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THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



'h^yifi<^ 



THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 

NEW YORK • BOSTON • CHICAGO - DALLAS 
ATLANTA • SAN FRANCISCO 

MACMILLAN & CO., Limited 

LONDON • BOMBAY • CALCIJTTA 
MELBOURNE 

THE MACMILLAN CO. OF CANADA, Ltd. 

TORONTO 



THE PLAIN STORY 
OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



BY 

JOHN SPENCER BASSETT, Ph.D. 

SYDENHAM CLARK PARSONS PROFESSOR OF AMERICAN HISTORY 
IN SMITH COLLEGE 



THE MACMILLAN COMPANY 
1916 

All rights reserved 



.1 
.p2 



COPYKIGHT, li»l(i, 

By the mac mill an COMPANY. 

Set up and electrotyped. Piiblislied, February, 1916. 




MAR ^2 1916 



Notinocti llress 

.T. S. Gushing Co. — Berwick & Smith C<i 

Norwood, Mass., U.S.A. 



)CI.A420961 



Uo 

E. H. B. AND M. r.. B. 

THIS KOOK 

IS AFFKCTIONATELY 

DEDICATKl) 



PREFACE 

My purpose in writing this book is expressed in the title. I wish 
that it may be a plain story of the achievement of human beings in 
that part of the Western Hemisi)here which is now the United States 
of America. To relate the main facts clearly and broadly, rather 
than to describe many detailed occurrences, has been constantly in 
my mind. The story here presented may be taken as an introduc- 
tion for a wider study of our history. It has been my aim to use 
simple but strong language, and to place the emphasis of the book 
on human actions. But much attention has been given to social 
history, and in two chapters the outlines of American government 
have been presented. I hope the book will prove neither hard nor 
easy for pupils. If it is received as a straightforward story, drawing 
forth the earnest efforts of capable pupils and making for the suc- 
cess of faithful teachers, it will be a source of pleasure for the 
author, repaying him for many days and nights of careful study of 
our national history. More especially, I wish that the book may 
serve, along with many other excellent works of similar scope, to 
give to the American youth a better appreciation of the glorious 
history of their native land, and to create in them a warmer purpose 
to serve their country and promote its progress. 

With the hope of making the task of the teacher lighter, the 
chapters have been made short and an abundance of marginal head- 
ings has been introduced. On the basis of these headings complete 
outlines can be made by the pupils, which, when studied under the 
chapter headings, will give the pupil good topical grasp of the sub- 
ject. The questions at the ends of the chapters are intended for 



viii PREFACE 

the use of pupils in the preparation of their work. They are so 
arranged as to call forth efforts to define the facts in the text from 
more than one point of view. Although this practice may suggest 
partial repetition, it will, if persistently followed, make for accu- 
rate knowledge. One of the traits most generally lacking in ad- 
vanced students of history is the ability to make careful and dis- 
criminatmg statements. No effort will be spared by the good 
teacher to remedy this deficiency. The full questioning on details, 
here offered so that the pupil may test himself while preparing his 
lesson, should aid in developing accuracy. The topics at the ends 
of chapters are suggestions for the teachers who wish to prepare 
lectures on supplementary subjects, or who wish to have students 
write short reports on topics not fully treated in so brief a text as 
this must necessarily be. The resourceful teacher will reject them 
as freely as he desires, or add to them from his knowledge. 

JOHN SPENCER BASSETT. 

Northampton, Massachusetts, 
July 12, 1915. 



CONTENTS 



OHAPTEK 

I. America before the Arrival of Columbus 

II. The Arrival of Columbus 

III. The Spanish Colonies in America 

IV. The First English Colony 
V. The New England Colonies 

VI. Life in the Earliest Colonies 

VII. The Later Group of Colonies 

VIII. The Earliest Signs of Union among the Colonies 

IX. The Wars against the Indians and the French . 

X. The Government of the Colonies . 

XI. The Causes of the American Revolution 

XII. The Revolutionary War .... 

XIII. Remodelling the Government . 

XIV. The Actual Government .... 
XV. The National Government under the Federalist Party 

XVI. The Government under the Early Republicans, 1801-1811 

XVII. The War of 1812 

XVIII. The Settlement op the West, 1788-1820 

XIX. The Government under the Later Republicans, 1811 

XX. The Government under Jackson and Van Buren 

XXI. How Slavery Divided the North and the South 

XXII. The Early' History of Texas and the Southwest 

XXIII. The Controversy over Slavery in the Territories 

XXIV. The Steps Leading to War ..... 
XXV. The War in the West 

XXVI. The War in the East . . . . . . 



-1820 



PAGE 
1 

13 

27 
36 
49 
68 
85 
100 
110 
128 
140 
156 
182 
196 
208 
222 
234 
245 
261 
276 
290 
299 
313 
324 
335 
357 



CONTENTS 



CHAPTER 

XXVII. Measures Supporting the War . = o . 

XXVIII. The Keconstkuction of the South 

XXIX. The Political History under Johnson and Grant 

XXX. The Growth of the Nation after the War 

XXXI. The Settlement of the Far West 

XXXII. The Political History from 1877 to 1897 . 

XXXIII. A New Attitude toward Foreign Nations . 

XXXIV. The Wars with Spain and the Filipinos 
XXXV. The Political Life since the Spanish War 

XXXVI. The Progress of the People, 1865-1915 

Appendix : 

The Declaration of Independence 
The Constitution of the United States 



PAGE 

374 
384 
396 
408 
419 
432 
446 
457 
472 
489 

505 
510 



COLOR MAPS 



Southern Colonies, 1750 facing 

New England Colonies, 1750 

Middle Colonies, 1750 

The United States at the Close of the Revolution . 
The United States in 1805 ..... 
The Territorial States of Slavery, 1860 . 
The Territorial Growth of the United States 



PAOK 

41 

55 

92 

185 

228 

318 

between 476 and 477 



/ 




Photograph from Bureau of Ethnology 
A North American Indian 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERI- 
CAN HISTORY 

CHAPTER I 
AMERICA BEFORE THE ARRIVAL OF COLUMBUS 

We must not think that the history of our country began with 
the arrival of men from Europe. Many hundreds of years earher 
than that time Indians Uved here in their own way. The early 
They knew nothing of Europe nor of the cities, states, Americans 
and fine manners of the great nations which made history on the 
eastern side of the Atlantic. To them America was the only 
world in existence and the Indian life the only life a people could 
possibly lead. They considered an Indian canoe the only possible 
kind of boat, an Indian house the only kind of house, and an 
Indian village the only kind of town. Before we read about 
America in the hands of the whites, we must know something of 
the Indians and see how they were in the habit of governing 
themselves. We must also see how they lived in their daily lives. 
So far as we can learn, they were the earliest Americans. 

We do not know for certain where the Indians came from, but 
there is reason to suppose that they are of the same stock as the 
inhabitants of the northeastern corner of Asia. Both origin of the 
peoples have the same kind of coarse black hair, the Indians 
same copper-colored skin, and the same high cheek bones. To 
this day the natives cross the Bering Straits in their rude boats, 
and it is possible that our earliest inhabitants came from Asia in 
this way. It is also possible that the people of northeastern Asia 
arrived there from Alaska. 



2 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

All the earliest Americans were probably Indians ; but great 
differences grew up among them because the various branches of 
the race dwelt far apart. Some of them inhabited 
warm countries and had to live very unlike people 
who dwelt in cold regions. The Eskimos are Indians, but they are 
forced to dress in furs. They cannot have farms or gardens and 
must live on fish and other wild animals of the frozen North. The 
people who lived in Mexico and Peru before the arrival of the 
whites were also of pure Indian blood, but they lived in a warm 
climate, where fruits and vegetables grew abundantly and were 
raised with little effort. The people found it easier to live by 
their gardens and fields than to hunt for their food ; and they 
thus grew into an agricultural people. In Mexico it was not 
advisable to move from one place to another, for in doing so it 
would be necessary to give up the fields. The people, therefore, 
came to build permanent houses out of adobe, which 

TbT 6X1C&I1S 

is a kind of sun-dried brick. These people became nu- 
merous, powerful, and prosperous. They also had time to improve 
their habits of life. They discovered how to make cloth, and 
they made pots for their household service. After a time they 
discovered the way to beautify pottery and cloth. This was their 
beginning of art. When the Spaniards conquered Mexico, they 
found cities, temples, and many people living in great comfort. 
But the Mexicans were Indians for all that, Indians in a high 
state of development. 

The Indians living in what is now the United States were less 
rude than the Eskimos and less advanced than the Mexicans. 
Our Game was abundant in this region, where the climate 

Indians ^as neither very hot nor very cold. Although the in- 

habitants had small fields in which they raised corn and pumpkins, 
most of their food came from forest and stream. When the game 
became scarce in one place, they moved to another where it was 
more plentiful. Thus they had to abandon their houses after a 
few years of use and did not take the trouble to make them of 



AMERICA BEFORE THE ARRIVAL OF COLUMBUS 3 




An Indian wigwam 



stone or brick. Wigwams covered with skins, bark, or grass 
gave sufficient shelter from the storms and could easily be rebuilt 
when the tribe changed its abode. 



4 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

How long had the Indians lived in America when the whites 
first saw them? That is a question about which there is much 
Age of dispute. The Indians had no books and the stories 

the Indian they told were too vague to throw any light on the 
^^^^ subject. Learned men have thought that an answer 

to the question may be found in the stone arrows, axes, and knives 
that are sometimes dug up at the bottoms of wells or other exca- 
vations. It is said that these things must have been made by 
hand, that they must have been dropped and covered up by sand 
and clay as it was brought forward by some river which once 
flowed over the site of the digging, and that it took a very long 
time to cover the implements and for the river then to dry up or 
change its course. Stone implements have been found near the 
Delawa'-e River many feet below the present surface of the earth. 
No one will say how long it has been since they were dropped at 
what must once have been the bottom of the river. 

The boldest claim of this kind was made for the "Calaveras 
skull." In 1866 a skull was produced in California, which, it was 
TheCaia- claimed, had been found by workmen digging a mine 
veras skull shaft as much as 130 feet below the surface. If what 
was claimed was true, this human skull must have lain where 
found through more than 100,000 years ; for the region was 
volcanic, and above the spot in which it was said to have been 
found were layers of gravel on the top of thick layers of lava. 
The skull is now in a museum at Harvard University ; but there 
are many men who do not think it was found where the miners 
claim. 

At Lansing, Kansas, in 1902, two skulls were found 20 feet be- 
low the surface near the banks of the Missouri River. It was 
The Lansing evident that the spot at which they were found was 
skulls once river bottom and is now exposed and dry because 

the current has shifted. We do not know how long the Lansing 
skulls lay in the ground before discovery. It is supposed by some 
that the time was not more than one thousand years, and by 



AMERICA BEFORE THE ARRIVAL OF COLUMBUS 5 

others the period is estimated at thirty thousand j^ears. The 
skulls of Indians are unlike those of other races, and when we see 
that the Lansing skulls are very much Hke those of the present race 
of Indians, we conclude that Indians lived on the banks of the 
Missouri from one to thirty thousand years ago. Other evidence 
points to the same conclusion. This is about all we can say in 
answer to the question : How long has man lived in America ? 

Some Indians buried their dead in mounds, either round or long 
and irregular in shape. When one of these mounds is opened 
we find skeletons and many implements. It was The mound 
thought that a dead Indian would need his bow, arrows, builders 
hatchets, and jars of food, as well as his beads and other orna- 
ments, on his journey to the happy hunting grounds beyond the 
grave. The burial mounds in the Ohio valley are so large «that it 
was once thought that they were constructed by a race superior 
to the Indians. But when we dig into them we find they were 
burial places, like other mounds. The skeletons they contain 
are Indian skeletons. The old view that the mound builders were 
a separate race has been given up. 

The Indians hved in small numbers scattered over large areas. 
They dwelt in this way because a numerous population in one 
place would destroy the game. They were in tribes. Linguistic 
or "nations," as they were sometimes called. A families 
tribe would wander forth in search of better game or in an attempt 
to shun some strong hostile Indians. Thus some tribes which 
once lived side by side became widely divided. The best way of 
telling which tribes are related to one another is to observe their 
language! For example, the Cheyennes who once lived in Wyo- 
ming and Colorado speak a language like that of the Algonquins 
in New England, and we conclude that the two tribes once lived 
together. A group of tribes speaking the same language is called 
a linguistic family. 

Three great families occupied the eastern part of North America 
from Florida to Newfoundland. The first was the Algonquian 



6 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

Family. It takes its name from the Algonquins, one of its tribes, 
who hved on the St. Lawrence River. Other tribes were the 
The great Mohegans on the Hudson ; the Pequots and Narragan- 
famiiies setts in New England ; the Delawares in Pennsylvania ; 
the Powhatans in Virginia ; the Pamlicos in North Carolina ; the 
Shawnees of Tennessee ; the Miamis, Illinois, Kickapoos, and 
Foxes in the region between the Ohio River and the Lakes ; and 
the Cheyennes and Arapahoes in the upper Missouri valley. All 
these tribes played important parts in opposing the attempts 
of the whites to settle the country. The Iroquoian Family was 
also very important. It contained the Iroqouis, or Five Nations, 
in New York ; the Hurons, on the shores of Lake Huron ; the 
Cherokees, in the southern Appalachian Mountains ; and the Tus- 
caroras, in eastern North Carolina. The third great family was 
the Muskhogean. It contained the Creeks, living in Georgia and 
Alabama ; the Chickasaws, living west of the Creeks ; the Choc- 
taws on the lower Mississippi ; and the Seminoles in Florida. 
West of the Mississippi River were many families, some of them 
quite small. The greatest was the Siouan Family, living chiefly 
in the Dakotas. It contained the Sioux tribes, the Crows, Caws, 
Omahas, and Winnebagos. One tribe of this family, the Ca- 
tawbas, lived far eastward in South Carolina. The student 
should remember the location of the leading Indian tribes. He 
should also remember that there were tribes that did not belong to 
either of these families. 

The Indian knew nothing about a linguistic family, and fierce 
wars were sometimes waged between tribes speaking the same 
Confed- language. To him it was sufficient to stand by the 
eracies members of his tribe. He knew nothing of exact 

boundaries between tribes. Some small valley, peninsula, or the 
shores of a bay might mark the limits in which a tribe lived. 
We sometimes come across confederacies made up of several small 
tribes. They were usually formed through conquest and grew up 
because in one of the tribes was a powerful chief who could 



AMERICA BEFORE THE ARRIVAL OF COLUMBUS 7 

make men obey him. Such a chief was Powhatan, whose rule 
extended over most of the Virginia tribes when the whites arrived 
in that colony. He surrounded himself with a guard of fifty men 
who acted as a kind of police, protecting him from attack and see- 
ing that the warriors obeyed his will. 

A still greater confederacy was that of the Iroquois, in middle 
and western New York, composed of five tribes, or nations; 
the Mohawks, Oneidas, Senecas, Onondagas, and Iroquois 
Cayugas. After the Tuscaroras, of North Carolina, Confederacy 
were conquered by the whites in 1713, they removed to New York 
and became the sixth of the Iroquois nations. The confederacy 
had a great council in which each tribe had representatives. The 
council decided upon matters concerning all the tribes, such as 
war and peace ; and its decisions were treated with great respect. 
The Iroquois confederacy was more like modern government 
than anything else among the Indians. 

Indians of the same kindred were said to belong to a com-' 

mon clan, and there were several clans in each tribe. The clan 

had the name of an animal by which it was known, as 

The clan 
the "Wolf," or the "Bear" clans. When an animal 

was thus taken as the name of a clan, it was called a totem. It is 
plain that the totem was supposed to have some power of protect- 
ing or helping the members of the clan ; and an Indian treated 
his totem with great respect. A man might be adopted in a 
clan ; and sometimes prisoners of war, who were about to be 
killed, were rescued and adopted. If an Indian was captured, 
he thought it great shame to show that he feared death ; and no 
other Indian was likely to claim him for adoption if he seemed 
afraid to die. 

Most of the government of Indians was done within the clan, 
at the head of which was a man of great dignity, called a sachem. 
He was supposed to know all about the old customs of Sachem 
the clan. If a man or woman had violated these cus- and council 
toms, the sachem tried the case and decided what the penalty 



8 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

should be. When the sachem died all the men and women met 
in a council of the clan and elected his successor, and the votes 
of the women were equal in weight to those of the men. 

There was also a war chief, a man selected by the council for his 
bravery and skill in war. The warriors were called braves, and 
they gloried in their deeds of valor. When they went on the war- 
path they painted their faces in red and black, and they wore 
Chiefs and feathers, the heads of animals, and other awe-inspir- 
braves j^g objects. They believed that by making them- 

selves terrible to look at they would frighten their opponents 
from the field of battle. As each side knew that behind each hide- 
ous mask was only an Indian, it is likely that most of their care 
to decorate themselves was wasted. 

The Indian law forbade a man to marry within his own clan, 
and a wife was never considered a member of her husband's clan. 
Marriage, I^ ^^e became a widow, she returned to her own people 
kinship, and her children went with her. They were not kin 
property ^^ ^ier husband's people, but only to their mother's 
kindred. One of the effects was that children did not inherit 
the property of their father ; for it must go to his own kindred, 
who were members of his o^\^^ clan, that is, to his mother's chil- 
dren. As the Indians had no such thing as private property in 
land this was not a very important matter. Land belonged to 
the tribe ; and about the only thing a man possessed was his 
hunting implements and his clothing. After the arrival of the 
whites, however, the Indians began to own private property, 
but it was a long time before they showed a desire to become 
landowners. 

The Indians drew a distinct line between the work a man 
should do and that which a woman should do. Fighting against 
Work of the tribal enemies and hunting was the man's work. It 
men and was the work in which there was danger, and facing 
women danger boldly was a great virtue in the eyes of these 

people. This work also demanded the power to endure hunger. 



AMERICA BEFORE THE ARRIVAL OF COLUMBUS 9 

to march cautiously through the forest, and to be ready to die 
without flinching. The Indian women admired the courage of the 
men. They wiUingly worked the fields of corn and dressed the 
game their husbands killed. They lived happily in their own em- 
ployment and did not think they were treated badly. White 
people are brought up to feel that farm labor should be done by 
men, and it seemed to the colonists that the Indians were very 
unfair to their women. We should be able to look at the matter 
from the Indian's point of view, ])ut this does not mean that we 
should adopt his customs. 

When the whites make war they fight for some special object. 
Sometimes it is for territory, and sometimes for tribute. At the 

end of the war they make a treaty. But the Indians „ , . 

JVLflkitis w3.r 
usually fought because they felt themselves the heredi- 
tary foes of their enemies. They did not make treaties after 
fighting one another. The defeated side only waited until it 
recovered from the blow it had received, which might be several' 
years, and then fell suddenly on its former conqueror, trying to 
wipe out the disgrace of the old defeat. When the warriors were 
ready to go on the warpath they assembled for a war dance, 
and then they set out in war paint. Each man carried a leather 
pouch of roasted corn meal, called rockahominy, tied around his 
waist. When they arrived in the enemy's country, they could 
not cook food lest the smoke of their fires show they were coming. 
Then the rockahominy was used. A spoonful in the palm of the 
hand moistened with water would restore the strength of a fam- 
ishing man for several hours. The Indian was trained to endure 
extreme hunger. When a war party had struck their blow at an 
enemy they returned to their own country. It might be several 
years before the other side was able to try to take its revenge, 
but they were sure to make the attempt. A great many Indians 
were killed in these unending wars, and the result was that the 
population did not increase. Another thing that kept down the 
number of the Indians was smallpox. They did not know how 



10 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 




This picture was designed to show Champlain's attack on the Iroquois fort 
Inside the fort are the long houses of these Indians. 

to treat the disease, and when it broke out in a village it destroyed 
many people. 

Most of the life of the Indians was spent out of doors. They 
used a house as a sleeping place and for protection against rain 
and cold. The building was either round or long. The round 
house was brought to a point at the top and covered 
with bark, skins, or grass. At the tip of the roof was 
a hole through which came the smoke that arose from the hearth 
just beneath it. Inside were several rooms which got narrower 
around the hearth, like the points in the slices of a pie. Each 
room could thus have the benefit of the fire. The long houses 



Houses 



AMERICA BEFORE THE ARRIVAL OF COLUMBUS 11 

also were divided into rooms, and between the rooms were fire pits 
with holes above them. The smoke was supposed to go out of 
the roofs, but it usually went all through the house before it 
escaped. It proved very trying to the whites who had to visit the 
Indians, but the savages were used to the smoke and did not suffer. 

The great ships of the first white men who came to America, 
the guns that roared out death to men at a distance, and steel 
axes that would cut more in an hour than a stone ax Indians and 
would cut in a week, — all these possessions of the stran- the whites 
gers seemed to the natives to show that the white men were aided 
by powerful gods. They had great respect for the strangers, 
presented them with food, and wished to have them for friends. 
After a while they saw that the whites were only men. They 
stole the wonderful hatchets and guns and the whites punished 
them sternly. Wherever the two races came together they were 
soon at war. The whites captured the Indians and took them 
away as slaves. If the natives saw a white man's ship in a harbor 
or river's mouth, they lay in wait to seize and murder any of the 
crew who came ashore. This happened when ships came to 
explore the country or to trade for furs. After a long time the 
whites began to arrive as settlers, clearing the forests, building 
houses, and planting fields. 

The Indian became alarmed, lest his lands be taken away 
and the game be destroyed. Now came fiercer wars than before. 
But the Indian was no match for the white man. The Indians 
Walled towns, strong forts, cannon, and muskets were driven west- 
too much for him. He was driven back from the ^ 
coast, across the mountains, and then across the great plains in 
the middle of the continent, until at last he ceased to fight and 
settled down to a quiet life in the Far West. The government of 
the United States has spent much money in the past fifty years to 
educate him and to induce him to adopt the habits of white men. 
In spite of this generous treatment the Indians as a race progress 
slowly. 



12 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



QUESTIONS 

I. What was the probable origin of the American Indians? How did 
differences grow up between the branches of the Indian race? Give the 
important characteristics of the Eskimos, the Mexicans, and the Indians 
of the United States. 

II. About how long have the Indians hved in America? How do we 
get evidence on this point from stone implements ? What was claimed for 
the Calaveras skull? What do the Lansing skulls indicate? How did 
the Indians bury their dead ? Explain the great mounds in Ohio. 

III. Explain the Unguistic family. How does language show the 
kinship of tribes? Describe the location of the Algonquian, Iroquoian, 
Muskhogean, and Siouan families. 

IV. What was an Indian confederacy? Describe the confederacy of 
the Iroquois. Describe the clan, the totem. What did adoption signify? 
What was the position of a sachem ? Describe the tribal council. Explain 
the position of the chief. What was a brave? 

V. Explain the nature of Indian kinship. What was the Indian's idea 
of private property? How was the work divided between men and 
women ? How did the Indians conduct their military campaigns ? What 
kept the Indian population from increasing? Describe the Indian house. 

VI. How did the Indians first treat the whites? What caused them 
to change their attitude? Show how the Indian was driven westward. 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

Theories of the Origin of the Indians ; Controversy over the Calaveras 
Skull; The Serpent Mound of Ohio; A Pueblo; The Power of the 
Iroquois ; The Indian's Religion. 



CHAPTER II 
THE ARRIVAL OF COLUMBUS 

In the days of the Roman empire the Mediterranean Sea, as 
the name indicates, was considered the middle of the world. To 
the people living in Italy northern Europe seemed as Early 
wild as northern Canada now seems to the people of notions 
the United States. The Italians thought the earth a flat plain sur- 
rounded by seas in which dwelt monsters who would destroy 
whatever ship came in their reach. When a vessel ventured out 
of the Straits of Gibraltar it kept close to the shore and felt itself 
lucky if it reached Britain and returned safely. It did not dare go* 
far south of the straits ; for it was supposed that the great heat 
there would draw the bolts from the ship and allow it to fall into 
pieces under the crew. The mariners had no compass by which 
to steer when sun and stars were not visible and they had no 
instruments to reckon latitude and longitude. It is not surpris- 
ing that the sailors were very timid and superstitious. 

As time passed and civilization and commerce spread through 
northern Europe, men came and went more freely from the Med- 
iterranean to the English Channel, the Baltic Sea, and Iceland and 
Norway and Sweden. The Norsemen, who lived for Greenland 
the most part in Norway, were a bold people and in the ninth 
century were showing the effects of their contact with the civil- 
ized south. They built long boats which they sailed very skillfully 
and began to visit many distant lands. Some of them turned 
northward along the coast of Scotland, and in 874 they planted a 
colony in Iceland. Shortly afterwards one of their ships was 
blown beyond Iceland to the west and returned with the story of 

13 



14 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



a great country it had discovered. The adventure was long 
remembered, and in 983 Eric the Red, an Iceland chief, sailed west 
and discovered Greenland, where he founded a colony in which 
his family became very important. 

About 1000 his son, Leif Ericsson, with a company of hardy 
Norsemen sailed still farther west looking for a coimtry about 
Leif Erics- which vague reports had reached him. He came after 
son a time to a great continent and sailed southward along 

its rocky shores for many days. He called the country Vinland, 
because he found wild grapes there ; and he tried to plant a colony. 




HEKLA ^r Or V' 

FAROE IS. i /" O > CNSf 

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SHETLAND IS..- i ^' LL , tti^a. 

ORKNEY 1. ...; Chny.an^ , ^ ^ 

'^\C yi,., DENI<fAPK 



BRITIsrf, 



NDUND 
^^ tyCAPE^^Eh XTON I. 




Where the Norsemen sailed 

perhaps on the New England coast. Seven voyages were made to 
Vinland, but after a while the people of Greenland lost interest 
in it, and the colony was abandoned. The discovery of Vinland 
is described in the Norse Sagas, a collection of Scandinavian 
stories. There were at that time no printed books ; and it is 
not thought that Columbus ever heard of Leif Ericsson or his dis- 
covery. From Leif to Columbus was nearly five hundred years, 
which is more than from Columbus to our day. 

In the Middle Ages the people knew that an ocean lay west of 
Medieval Europe and a great sea south of it ; and they had 
geography heard from travelers that water was on the east and 
south of Asia. But this theory did not answer the question, 



THE ARRIVAL OF COLUMBUS 15 

'' What about Africa? " There it was south of the Mediterranean, 
a burning desert in the interior, and no one was wilhng to explore 
it. The impression prevailed that it grew hotter and hotter as 
one went southward. The only proper way to treat such asser- 
tions as these was to go and see if they were true. 

In the fifteenth century European mariners began to use a com- 
pass to steer by and an astrolabe to tell where they were on the 
ocean when out of sight of land. These two little in- Thenaviga- 
struments made them much bolder in sailing the seas, tors 
A new race of navigators grew up. They were men who studied 
geography, made maps of newly discovered regions, and made 
voyages to learn still more than was known. To-day we know so 
much about the surface of the earth that there is little for naviga- 
tors to explore. It was not so in the fifteenth century. The 
navigators were bold and learned, and we owe them much for 
their patient discoveries. 

The most famous of these men was Prince Henry, the Naviga- 
tor, brother of the king of Portugal. He established a school in 
which the latest discoveries were taught to hardy sea- West coast 
men, a trained band of courageous explorers. Their of Africa 
main purpose was to pass around the continent of Africa and reach 
the East Indies, where the valuable spices grew. Ship after ship 
went out, and each sailed a little farther southward. When the 
equator was crossed safely and the captain found he could return 
to Portugal there was great joy. After that the explorers went 
more boldly into the unknown African waters. When they turned 
Cape Palmas and found that the shore ran east and west they 
thought the continent was at last passed and they were on the 
road to the eastern coast of Africa. But they were on the Guinea 
coast, and when the land began to run southward again for many 
miles they were discouraged and turned back. Others came, and 
in 1487 their perseverance was rewarded when Bartholomew 
Diaz passed the Cape of Good Hope and found that he was sailing 
nearly northward. He would have gone on to India, but his crew 



16 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 




THE ARRIVAL OF COLUMBUS 17 

refused to proceed, and he had to return. The sailors feared 
that they would go so far the}^ would never see their homes 
again. 

The next step was taken by Christopher Columbus. He was a 
skillful navigator and a man who dared to try to carry out what 
reason told him could be accomplished. He believed Columbus's 
that by sailing westward he could cross the Atlantic i<iea 
and find whatever land lay beyond it. He seems to have thought 
that the first land he might reach would be India or Japan, 
from which came the rich goods of the East. Marco Polo, a 
Venetian, who went to the East overland in the thirteenth century, 
had written a book in which he described the country, its great 
riches, and its coast line. The book was now much talked about, 
and it helped to fire the imagination of those who wished to reach 
India by water. 

Columbus was poor and money was needed to get ships and 
sailors for his explorations. The king of Portugal was using his 
ships for tlte discoveries by way of Africa and refused Ferdinand 
aid. Then Columbus applied to Ferdinand and Isa- andisabeUa 
bella, king and queen of Spain. He made excellent arguments 
to show them that his plans were good, but the king and queen 
were ignorant of the work of the navigators and were busy 
trying to drive the Moors out of Spain. They referred the 
petition of Columbus to wise men at their court. But the 
wise men were not in favor of new ideas, and as they pointed 
to the old traditions to show that Columbus was a dreamer 
his request was refused. He did not give up, but for seven 
years urged his case so patiently that his faithfulness was at 
last rewarded. Perez, the confessor of the queen, and Santangel, 
her treasurer, were convinced by his arguments, and through their 
influence the queen furnished most of the money the explorer 
needed. 

Soon all was ready, and August 3, 1492, he set sail with three 
vessels, so small that in our day they would hardly be considered 



18 



THE PLAIN STORY OP AMERICAN HISTORY 



safe for coastwise traffic. They were called the Santa Maria, the 
Pinta, and the Nina. They first went to the Canaries, where 
First voyage thc}^ repaired some damages they had sustained, and 
of Columbus September 6 they again were under way. Columbus 
now steered straight into the unknown ocean. He knew well 




The ships of Columbus 

the superstition of his sailors and to quiet their fears kept two logs : 
one for the sailors, in which he made the sailings shorter than they 
really were, and another for himself, in which he kept the true 
distances. No storms were encountered, but the men soon be- 
came greatly alarmed. Columbus was a stern master and there were 
many unruly spirits on his ships. Discontented ones began to 
talk scornfully of his scheme, the sailors grew rebellious and Oc- 



THE ARRIVAL OF COLUMBUS 19 

tober 10 they threatened to throw him overboard if he did not 
return. He met them bravely, declaring he would never turn 
back until he found land. Already signs of land began to appear, 
the boughs of trees floating in the water and birds which had their 
homes on the land. In the evening of the next day, October 11, 
lights were seen on the horizon, and the roaring of the surf showed 
that land was before them. The morning revealed a 
low island on which the ship's company landed. The 
natives were understood to call it Guanahani, but Columbus, 
who was a pious man, named it San Salvador. We are not sure 
which of the known islands of the new world it was, but it is 
generally supposed to have been Watling's Island, one of the 
Bahamas. 

The natives were very friendly and made Columbus understand 
that a great body of land was to the southward. He set sail 
and discovered Cuba, which he thought the mainland cuba and 
of India. Here also he was well received. He noted Hayti 
that the natives had a plant whose leaves they rolled into a tube 
and smoked, calling the rolls tobaccos. He next turned eastward 
and came to Hayti, which he named "La Isla Espanola," or the 
Spanish Island, whence comes the name Hispaniola. On the 
shore he lost his best ship, the Santa Maria, and this showed him 
that he should return at once. If he lost his other ships the world 
would never know of his discovery, and he would be remembered 
as a foolish man whose vain scheme only ended in the death of 
many men. He set sail from Hayti and arrived in Spain March 
15, 1493, seven months and twelve days after he sailed on his first 
voyage. 

There was now great rejoicing. India was discovered, so men 
said ; and hundreds of people wished to go to it. The king and 
queen of Spain were as pleased as the people. They Second 
furnished seventeen ships with which Columbus set out, voyage 
1493, to explore the coasts and settle a colony. He had the rank 
of admiral with power to rule over the land he discovered. Under 



20 THE PLAIN STORY OP^ AMERICAN HISTORY 

him served many high nobles, who thought they were going to 
India to get gold and honor. Columbus was lowborn, and they 
did not hke to obey him. He was brave and just, but he did not 
know how to rule. He landed in Hayti and sent explorers through- 
out the island. They returned without finding cities or great 
riches. 

As a result disappointment ruled in the colony and the admiral 
found his subjects on the point of rebellion. He dared not go 
Gold and home with news that the new world was only a forest- 
sugar covered wilderness. He was lucky enough to discover 
a little gold in the hills. Mines were opened, and the natives were 
forced to work them. The small amount of yellow metal that was 
thus taken was sent to Spain with the assurance that a great deal 
more would follow. Soon, also, sugar began to be raised. Land 
was assigned to the Spaniards, who were allowed to force the 
natives to work on it. Sugar gro^ving became the basis of wealth 
in the Spanish West Indies. 

Columbus returned to Spain in 1496. Two years later he 
sailed on a third voyage. This time he turned well southward, 
Third hoping to pass what he still thought was China and 

voyage reach the spice islands in the Indian Ocean. To his 

surprise he encountered a great body of land, which neither Marco 
Polo nor any other person had described. He realized for the first 
time that he had discovered a new continent. But he did not 
give up the idea that what he had already visited was a part of 
Asia. His explanation was that a great continent lay south of 
India, and that Marco Polo had known nothing of it. He sailed 
many miles along the north coast of South America, and returned 
to Spain without learning that the continent he had discovered 
was connected by the Isthmus of Panama with another great body 
of land north of it. 

In 1502 he made his last voyage. This time he passed Cuba 
on the north, crossed the Gulf of Mexico, and touched land in 
Yucatan. Turning southward he expected to reach the Indian 



THE ARRIVAL OP^ COLUMBUS 21 

Ocean. Again he was disappointed; for after many days he 
sailed past the isthmus and again reached South America. His 
work was over and he died in 1506, worn out by hard- Fourth 
ships and disappointed because his great work had voyage of 
brought him neither riches nor power. He died without Columbus 
reahzing the full meaning of what he had discovered. He knew 
that out in the great ocean, which in his youth was the dreaded 
home of mystery and danger, there really existed a barrier of land. 
How far it ran north and south and what lay beyond it were ques- 
tions he could not answer. 

Before Columbus died many other sea captains began to ex- 
plore the shores of the new land. They were as brave as he, but 
he had furnished the idea and shown that it could be other 
carried out. It was his fate to touch the new world explorers 
at nearly the middle of its Atlantic coast line. Those who came 
afterwards explored the coasts above and below that point. 
They were fired by the hope of discovering a passage around the 
new continent to India. 

Spain was first to explore the eastern shore of South America. 
In 1499 Pinzon, one of her seamen, sailed to America. A storm 
blew him out of his course and far southward in the South 
middle of the Atlantic. When it was over he turned America 
his prow westward and found land several degrees south of the 
equator. He then sailed north along the coast of Brazil and 
returned to Spain with stories of the discovery of a vast continent. 
How far south it extended he did not know, but in 1519 Magellan, 
a Portuguese in Spanish service, sailed to find out. He spent the 
winter on the coast of Patagonia, where the climate was like that 
of Newfoundland. In the following spring — it was autumn in 
Spain — he entered the Straits of Magellan, named Pinzon and 
in his honor. It is a narrow passage three hundred and Magellan 
twenty-five miles long, with high mountains rising on the sides. 
The sailors were alarmed by this singular arm of the sea and began 
to wonder whither it would take them, but it opened at last on 



THE ARRIVAL OF COLUMBUS 



23 



a great ocean, and Magellan boldly struck across it in a north- 
western direction. For many weeks he sailed without sight of 
land. Food ran low, and even the rats in the ship proved a lux- 
ury. The sailors sold them to the rich adventurers on board at 
half a ducat each. After suffering much the explorers came to 
Guam, where food and water were secured. Continuing the jour- 
ney they came next to the 
Philippines, where Magellan 
was killed in a fight with the 
islanders. Only one of his 
three ships reached Spain 
again. It had proved that 
the world can be circumnavi- 
gated. 

Although Spanish ships dis- 
covered Brazil, Spain did not 

get possession of it. The Pope's 

This brings up a ^"U 
story that goes back to 1493, 
when Europe was still talking 
about Columbus's wonderful 
discovery. Portugal felt her- 
self outdone by Spain and 

was inclined to be disagreeable. She advanced the claim that 
the new lands were only some strange coasts which her own ships 
had reached beyond the Canaries. This was untrue, but a 
quarrel seemed likely to break out, when the pope interfered 
by common consent and issued a bull dividing the new world. 
An imaginary line was authorized three hundred and seventy 
leagues west of Cape Verde Islands, and the land found to the east 
of it was to belong to Portugal while that discovered to the west 
was to belong to Spain. The eastern coast of South America juts 
out far into the Atlantic and as it extended beyond the pope's 
line it fell to Portugal. 'Spain took the coast south of Brazil to 




Magellan 



24 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

Cape Horn, and got possession of the western coast of the conti- 
nent. 

It was while South America was being explored that the name 
"America" came into use. One of the men in Spain who took 
The name part in exploration was Amerigo Vespucci, an Italian 
" America " by birth. He wrote an account of a voyage he made 
to the Orinoco region in 1499, with another man commanding 
the expedition, and in it he spoke of a new world he had seen. 
He falsely gave the date as 1497, a year before Columbus really 
discovered this region on his third voyage. But Vespucci was not 
suspected of this fraud, and when his account was published in 
Latin, in 1503, he was pronounced the discoverer of a new con- 
tinent, while Columbus, as the world then thought, had only found 
India. The new country was, therefore, called "America," from 
Americus, the Latin form of Amerigo. On the maps of the day 
what is now South America appears as America, while that which 
is the United States is called India or Cathay. Vasco da Gama 
sailed around Cape of Good Hope in 1497 and reached the true 
India. When the geographers came to realize this the name India 
disappeared from the maps of the new world and North America 
took its place. Shortly afterwards the southern continent began 
to be called South America. 

Let us now turn to the explorers of the northern coasts. Eng- 
land had as bold seamen as Spain, but her kings were busy at 
English ex- home and thought little of new countries. At last 
pioration came John Cabot, a man born in Genoa, who got 
permission to search for a northwestern route to India under the 
English flag. He set out in 1497, reached America near New- 
foundland, and sailed southward along the coast for a thousand 
miles. He is said to have made a second voyage in 1498 on which 
he went as far as the coast of South Carolina. It was seventy-five 
years after this before England again showed interest in America ; 
but she did not forget Cabot's voyage ; and she claimed as her 
owm all the land he discovered. 



THE ARRIVAL OF COLUMBUS 25 

Another northern explorer was Corte-Real, a Portuguese who 
discovered Labrador in 1500 ; but Portugal was intent on follow- 
ing her trade to the Indies by way of Cape of Good French ex- 
Hope and made no attempt to carry on the work of pioration 
Corte-Real. France took no part in the earliest explorations but 
in 1524 one of her sailors, Verrazano, came to the coast, explor- 
ing New York harbor and the shore east of it. In 1534 came 
another, Jacques Cartier. He entered the Gulf of Newfoundland 
and in a second voyage, 1535, explored the St. Lawrence as far as 
Montreal. He was looking for a passage to the Pacific Ocean and 
China ; and the name "La Chine " was given to the rapids which 
stopped his course at Montreal. It was in derision of his belief 
that China could be reached through the St. Lawrence. It was 
on the explorations of Cartier that France rested her claim to the 
St. Lawrence valley. 

QUESTIONS 

I. Describe the state of navigation in ancient times. What did the 
world think of the region south of Gibraltar? How did the Norsemen 
show their superiority as sailors? How did they come to settle in Green- 
land? Describe Leif Ericsson's discoveries. Why was . Vinland for- 
gotten for centuries ? How was its story preserved ? 

II. What was the medieval idea of geography? Explain the work of 
the navigators. Describe the services of Prince Henry the Navigator. 
Show how the west coast of Africa was explored. What did Bartholomew 
Diaz discover? 

III. What was the theory on which Columbus acted? Why was 
he greater than other navigators of his day? What effect did the stories 
of Marco Polo have ? Describe the efforts of Columbus to get money for 
his expedition. Describe his first voyage. How was he received when 
he returned ? How did his second voyage bring disappointment with it ? 
Why was sugar an important thing in the early history of the West Indies ? 
What did Columbus discover on his third and fourth voyages? What 
land did he think he had encountered south of the West Indies? 

IV. What land was discovered by Pinzon? How did Magellan com- 
plete this discovery? Describe Magellan's voyage on the Pacific Ocean. 
How did Brazil come into the possession of Portugal? How did the name 
"America" come into use? What did Vasco da Gama discover? 



26 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

V. Describe the explorations of John Cabot, Verrazano, Corte-Real, 
and Cartier. Which of these made voyages for England? for France? 
for Portugal? What claims were founded on them? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

A Description of Vinland ; Routes of Trade with the East ; The Ad- 
ventures of Marco Polo ; The Voyage of Magellan. 



CHAPTER III 
SPANISH COLONIES IN AMERICA 

Although our own country was settled by the English we must 
feel great interest in the colonies of Spain. They were the first 
European colonies in the new world, and the great why they 
amount of monej^ they yielded made other nations areim- 
wish to have colonies of their own. We must not p°^^"* 
forget, also, that Florida, Louisiana, Texas, New Mexico, Ari- 
zona, and California were once Spanish colonies. We shall not 
understand their early history unless we know how Spain explored 
the vast country Columbus discovered, and how she settled and. 
governed it. 

The first colony was Hispaniola, or Hayti. It was colonized 
by Columbus on his second voyage, and we have seen that it 
became a prosperous sugar-raising country. From this Hispaniola 
place it was easy to cross to Cuba, and in 1508 that and Cuba 
great island began to be settled. The two islands soon contained 
a number of rich sugar planters with great estates on which the 
Indians were forced to Avork. The natives did not make good 
slaves. Thej'^ loved freedom and pined away under their hard- 
ships. As thej^ died their places were taken by other Indians, 
captured by slave-hunters in other islands, and they also fell 
victims to slavery. By this means the original inhabitants of 
the West Indies were destroyed. Negro slaves were imported 
from Africa to take their places, and did not die under slavery 
as freely as the Indians. 

One of the richest men in Hispaniola in 1513 was Ponce de 
Leon. He was fond of adventure and had explored and settled 

27 



28 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

Porto Rico. When that was done he did not wish to remain idle 
on his estates. From the natives he heard of a rich country 
Florida beyond the Bahamas, in which was a fountain hav- 

discovered ing Avonderful virtue. One Avho bathed in it, so it 
was said, would find his youth renewed. Ponce de Leon believed 
the reports and thought it would be a worthy adventure to discover 
so wonderful a country. He fitted out an expedition at his own 
cost and sailed early in 1513 into the northern seas. Passing the 
Bahamas, as directed, he came to land on April 2. It was Easter 
Day, which the Spaniards call Pascua Florida, and the country 
abounded in flowers; so he named the land "Florida." The spot 
was north of what is now St. Augustine. He sailed southward 
along the coast, passed around the end of Florida, and reached 
Ponce de Apalache Bay on the west coast. He returned home- 
Leon ward thinking Florida was an island and got permis- 
sion to settle a colony in it. He now knew it contained no 
fountain of youth, but he thought great wealth and power would 
come to him who became its ruler. In 1521 he landed with his 
followers near what is now Tampa, laid out a town, and prepared 
to clear and cultivate the fields. But the Indians were hostile. 
They had now learned enough of the Spaniards to consider them 
enemies. They concealed themselves around the fort, attacked 
the settlers, and so wounded Ponce de Leon that he died after a 
long illness. His followers returned to Cuba, and it was many 
years before another colony was planted in Florida. 

Another explorer of the land was Balboa. He was once rich 
but had run into debt and was glad to leave Hispaniola to get 
away from his creditors. He joined a colony which set 
out for the Isthmus of Panama and became the leading 
man in it. From the Indians he learned of a great ocean to the 
westward, and he started with nearly two hundred Spaniards and 
some Indians to find it. The jungle was so dense that it took 
eighteen days to go forty-five miles. When the guides told him 
the sea was at hand, he caused his company to halt and went 



SPANISH COLONIES IN AMERICA 29 

forward alone, so that he might be the first to see the ocean. Then, 

as the beautiful surface of the Pacific stretched out beneath his 

eyes, he fell on his knees and thanked God that he was the first 

white man to see the Great Sea. This was in 1513, the year 

Ponce de Leon discovered Florida. 

In 1527 de Narvaez left Spain with six hundred colonists for 

Florida. He landed near Tampa, but so many of his followers 

deserted or died that he was in despair. Finally he 

^ De Narvaez 

marched into the interior, fought several battles with 

the Indians, came to the shores of the Gulf of Mexico, embarked 
on some rude boats, and sailed along the coast westward. De 
Narvaez was finally drowned, and all his men perished but four, 
who reached Mexico after wandering among the Indians for five 
years. One of them was Cabega de Vaca, who wrote a thrilling 
account of his experiences. He also described in glowing terms 
the country through which he had wandered, and thus he made 
others wish to explore it. 

One of the men who were fired by these tales was de Soto, 
who had obtained great sums of money in Peru. He was gov- 
ernor of Cuba and Florida and started out to explore ^ _ ^ 

De Soto 
Florida at his own expense. He landed at Tampa in 

1539 with more than six hundred men and marched into the wil- 
derness. For three years he went through the interior country, 
crossing Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Tennessee, 
Alabama, and Mississippi. In 1541 he reached the Mississippi 
River near Memphis and crossed it into Arkansas. He wished to 
march into the great West, but his men refused to go with him and 
he turned back toward the coast. Sickness overcame him and he 
died in May, 1542, His followers buried his body in the great river 
he had discovered and escaped to Mexico after many hardships. 
Ponce de Leon, de Narvaez, and de Soto were the three great 

Spaniards connected with the exploration of what we ^^ . 

_; „ , 1 • 1- Their work 

now know as the Gull States. They all lost their hves 

because of their zeal for exploration, but their work was very 



30 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



useful to those who came after them. They revealed the interior 
of the country east of the Mississippi. For the country west of 
that river another group of explorers did the same service ; and 
this leads us to speak of Mexico, from which the explorers of the 
Southwest went out. 




De Soto discovering the Mississippi River 

In 1.517 Spanish vessels which had been on the coast of Yucatan 
came to Cuba with stories of towns they had seen, whose streets 
Mexico con- were paved and whose buildings were of stone. Noth- 
quered by ing like this had been found elsewhere in the new"world, 
°^®^ and ships were dispatched to see if the report was true. 

They returned saying they had not only seen stone houses and 
paved streets, but they had seen good evidence that there was 
much gold in the interior of the country to which they had been. 
This report put all Cuba in motion. In 1519 eleven ships set out 
having on board five hundred and fifty Spaniards and half as many 
Indians. They were led by Cortez, as brave a man as one could 



SPANISH COLONIES IN AMERICA 31 

find in any country. When they had landed at what is now Vera 
Cruz, he burned his ships, lest his men should become discouraged 
and try to escape out of the country. Then he marched inland 
to the city of Mexico. By using tact at times and giving hard 
blows at others, he conquered the country in two years. He 
found much gold and silver ; and rich mines were opened which 
yielded vast treasures for many years. 

From Mexico many explorers went out into other parts of the 
new world. The Indians did not give much trouble and Spanish 
colonies were soon settled in Central America. Next prom 
they turned their attention to South America. They Mexico 
found a very rich country in Peru, where the Incas southward 
ruled. It was conquered by Pizarro, who sent home from it large 
amounts of gold and silver. Mines were opened in Peru also. 
The Spaniards took so much wealth from their mines in Mexico 
and Peru that they paid little attention to clearing. the land. 

Explorers went, also, to the northward from Mexico, traveling 
through our southwestern states. It was the stories of Cabega 
de Vaca, who wrote about the trials of de Narvaez and Coronado's 
his men, that turned attention to this region. Travel- march 
ers had gone into what is now Texas and returned with stories of 
seven cities of Cibola, fabulously rich and only awaiting another 
Cortez to take them. A friar was sent out to investigate, and he, 
returning after many days, footsore and lean, said he had seen 
one of the cities from afar. Then a body of men was sent out to 
plant a colony in the country. Coronado was made its leader, 
and he had eleven hundred men, whites and Indians. He reached 
th3 Gulf of California and then turned eastward through Arizona 
and New Mexico, halting near the border of Oklahoma. With a 
small guard he went as far as the center of Kansas. He found 
some Indian villages and pueblos, but no rich cities. The seven 
cities of Cibola were a myth, but it caused much searching through 
the Southwest, and by that means the world learned a great deal 
about the geography of that region. 



32 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

It may seem strange that the Spaniards could march at will 
through these large distances without attacks from the natives. 
The Span- There were two reasons for it. One was the quiet dis- 
iards and position of the Indian in the region from Texas south- 
the Indians ^^rd. He lived by cultivating small fields of maize, or 
vegetables, and did not depend on game as much as the tribes 
north of him. The appearance of white men did not alarm him : 
on the contrary, it pleased him ; for the whites brought articles of 
trade, things the Indian could not get otherwise. In the second 
place, we must remember that in most of the colonies in Central 
America the Spaniards did not pay much attention to farming. 
They settled at the ports and around the mines. They did not 
cover the countryside with farms, as the English did in the 
north, and the natives were not alarmed with the thought that the 
country would pass out of Indian hands. The Indians and Span- 
iards did not fight such fierce wars of extermination as the Eng- 
lish and Indians fought in what is now the United States. 

A very important part was played in the Spanish colonies by 
missionary priests. The Spaniards were very eager to convert 
The mis- the natives to Christianity. In Spain king, nobles, 
sionaries ^nd the church furnished money for this purpos(; ; and 
friars went out with every colony. A planter would receive a 
plantation, and to him would be assigned a group of Indians. He 
might require them to work on his land, but he was required, on 
his part, to have them taught in his religion. As fast as colonies 
were founded churches were established. Bishops were ap- 
pointed, cathedrals were built in the important towns, priests 
came over from Spain, and little bands of them went out 
to distant tribes establishing missions. The first white settlers 
in California and New Mexico were these missionaries. After a 
mission was founded, plantations owned by Spaniards who were 
not priests were apt to be located around it ; and the mission thus 
became the center of a civilized community. 

We have seen that slavery destroyed the native population of 



SPANISH COLONIP]S IN AMERICA 



33 



the West Indies. It might have destroyed also the Indians of 

Central America, if it had not been for the efforts of Las Casas, 

bishop of Chiapas, in Yucatan. He was one of the 

great Spaniards of his day, and he gave up a life of 

luxury in Europe in order to convert the Indians of the new 

world. His reputation for wise and benevolent plans was so 



Las Casas 




A California mission 



great that the king of Spain gave attention to anything he asked ; 
and it was in this way that he saved the Indians of Central America 
from slavery. Through his efforts an order was issued in 1542 
that these Indians should not be delivered into the hands of the 
Spanish landowners. They were to have their own land and live 
in villages, paying a small tribute to the Spanish governors. 
Each village was to have a priest and a schoolmaster and was 
to keep its own form of government under the authority of 
Spain. 

The colonies of Spain were ruled by officials appointed by the 
king. There were governors over provinces, and men appointed 

D 



34 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

under them who supervised the affairs of the towns and the 
smaller districts. All these officials were Spaniards. Many of 
The govern- them bought their offices and handed them down to 
ment of the their children. To see that they filled their offices prop- 
coionies ^^.jy officials were sent out through the colonies at reg- 
ular periods to inquire of the people about the conduct of the men 
in office. We must not think that those who bought offices or 
inherited them were necessarily bad officials. Some of them were 
very just to the people, and others were cruel, negligent, or corrupt. 

At the head of colonial government was the great council of 
the Indies. It was composed of high Spanish noblemen, and the 
The coun- records it has left show that it was ably managed. It 
cii of the made laws for the general welfare of the colonies, 
Indies nominated the higher officers, and settled disputes 

that came up before it. All the Spanish colonies were thus 
under one supervision, and they were governed in a similar way. 

The government of the English colonies, as we shall see, differed 
in some important respects from that of the Spanish colonies. 
Acompari- In the first place, the English colonies were self-govern- 
son ing in local affairs. The colonists elected representa- 

tives who made up a lawmaking assembly Avith duties somewhat 
like those of the parliament in Great Britain. Nothing like this 
existed in Spanish America. Another difference was in the large 
number of elective offices in most of the English colonies, espe- 
cially in those lying north of the Potomac. There were very few 
elective offices in the Spanish colonies. Still another difference 
was in the wide variety of government among the English colonies. 
Virginia and Massachusetts had not the same form of govern- 
ment for a large part of their colonial existence ; and the gov- 
ernment of Connecticut was like that of neither of them. Finally, 
the English colonies were not so closely dependent on the mother 
country as those of Spain. They used for their own purposes the 
taxes they levied in their own legislatures. The Spanish colonies 
yielded a large revenue to the mother country. 



SPANISH COLONIES IN AMERICA 35 



QUESTIONS 

I. Why are we interested in Spanish colonies? In which of our states 
did Spanish settlements once exist? What important explorations were 
sent out from Cuba ? What was the effect of slavery on the natives of the 
West Indies ? Who replaced them as laborers ? 

II. Name the leading Spanish explorers of the mainland. Describe 
the discovery of Florida. How did Florida get its name ? Who was the 
real discoverer of the Pacific Ocean, Balboa or Magellan? Describe the 
adventures of de Narvaez and de Soto. 

III. How was Mexico conquered? What were the most important 
products that Spain received from Mexico? Who conquered Peru? 
Describe Coronado's journey. Explain the "seven cities of Cibola." 

IV. How did the Spaniards manage to live peaceably with the Indians ? 
Did they drive the Indians out of the country in which Spanish colonies 
were planted ? Describe the work of the missionaries. Describe the serv- 
ice of Las Casas to the Indians. 

V. Describe the government of the Spanish colony. What was the 
Council of the Indies? Compare English and Spanish colonial govern- 
ment. 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Career of de Soto ; The Conquest of Mexico ; The Career of Las 
Casas. 



CHAPTER IV 
THE FIRST ENGLISH COLONY 




Roanoke Island and Chesapeake Bay 



The first Englishman to send 
a colony to America was Sir 
Roanoke Walter Raleigh. In 
Island 1584 he sent two 

shi])s to find a place at which 
a colony might be planted. 
They reached land near Cape 
Lookout and came to an inlet 
through which they entered 
Pamlico Sound, North Caro- 
lina, and anchored at Roanoke 
Island. In a few weeks they 
returned home with glowing 
accounts of the country. All 
England rang with praise, and 
Queen Elizabeth gave the new 
land the name "Virginia" in 
honor of herself, a virgin queen. 

Next year Raleigh sent out 
a second expedition to make a 
Second ex- temporary settle- 
pedition ment, and to explore 
the country in order to find the 
best place for a permanent 
town. It was attacked by 
Indians and returned to Eng- 



36 



THE FIRST ENGLISH COLONY 



37 



land, reporting that the entrance of Chesapeake Bay, seventy 
miles north of Roanoke Island, was the best place for settlement. 

No time was lost in sending a third expedition. It contained 
one hundred and fifty persons under John White as governor 
and left England on May 8, 1587. White was ordered The "Lost 
to establish "the Cities of Raleigh in Virginia" on the Colony" 
shores of Chesapeake Bay. He first reached Roanoke Island, 
where a small garrison had 
been left by the second expedi- 
tion. The captain of the ship 
on which he came would go no 
farther, and the colonists were 
forced to establish their town 
on that site. Among them 
were twenty-five women and 
children, and a few days after 
they landed a baby girl was 
born to Eleanor White Dare, 
the daughter of the governor. 
The child was named Virginia, 
the first white child of English 
parents born in America. A 
few days later Governor White 
at the request of the colonists 
departed for England to get 
supplies. He was not able to 

return for two years, and when he did come the colony had 
vanished. Tradition preserved by the Indians said that most of 
the colonists were slain by the savages and that the rest were 
taken prisoners and dispersed. The fate of Virginia Dare is as 
mysterious as that of the "Lost Colony of Roanoke." 

Raleigh was now bankrupt and was soon in prison. He had 
powerful enemies, and his life was finally taken to satisfy their 
hostility. Without money he could do no more for Virginia. 




Sir Walter Raleigh 



38 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

But he had friends and they were friends also of Virginia. Among 
them was Richard Hakluyt, a man of learning who delighted to 
Richard collect the stories of the bold sea captains who went 
Hakluyt to the new world. He wrote pamphlets on the advan- 
tages of English colonies. Others helped and in 1606 two com- 
Two com- panies w^ere organized to settle colonies in America, 
panics One was known as the Plymouth Company, and it was 

to plant colonies in the northern part of what is now the United 
States. The other was called the London Company, and it was 
to plant in the south. The first company failed, but the second 
kept up its work and out of it grew the colony of Virginia. 

Before that time several great trading companies had been 
created in Europe. They were composed of men who paid money 
Shares in iiito the common stock. Ships were then sent out, furs 
the com- or other articles were brought home and sold, and the 
pany profit was divided among the men who had bought 

shares in the enterprises. The London Company was founded 
on somewhat the same plan. A rich man would pay for several 
shares, a poor man would take fewer, and every free man who 
went to settle in Virginia was to have one share without paying 
anything. The company was to furnish everything needed in 
the colony, and all the products of the colony were to go into a 
common store and be sold. At the end of five years the profits 
were to be divided. A poor man who settled in the colony would 
have to work for the company', and his only reward would be his 
food and clothing and the part which would come to him as the 
owner of one share when the profits were divided. It was not a 
wise plan ; for men do not work well if they do not have what 
they produce. But we must remember that the English at this 
time knew nothing of how to plant colonies. They were soon to 
learn in the sad school of experience. 

The first colony of the London Company sailed from England 
in December, 1606, and entered Chesapeake Bay on May 6, 
1607. Before them was a great river which they called the James. 



THE P^IRST ENGLISH COLONY 



39 



Jamestown 



Thirty miles from its mouth they found a peninsula, two and a 
half miles long, connected with the mainland by a narrow isthmus, 
which the river has since cut through. It seemed a 
good place for a town because it could easily be de- 
fended and because at the western end the current had cut down 
the bank and scoured out a channel so deep that the ships could 
be tied to the trees on the shore and unloaded without docks. 
They landed on May 14, 
1607, and began at once 
to build a fort with dwell- 
ings and a church within 
the walls. The houses 
were of poles covered with 
bark and grass and placed 
close together on each side 
of a little street. In the 
colony were 104 persons. 
Half of them The 
were men of colonists 
good families who did not 
know how to do the labor 
of clearing the forest, but 
who came to Virginia for 
adventure. They were disappointed when they found how hard 
they must toil. Some would not work, but others proved excel- 
lent laborers, doing tasks they had never before been called on to 
attempt. The other half of the settlers were laboring men before 
they came to Virginia. At this time there were no women in 
the colony. 

While the fort and the houses were being built land was cleared 
and wheat was planted. The grain came up quickly but it was 
too late to ripen. Had they known, they might have Famine and 
planted the corn of the Indians with better success, disease 
Thus they raised no food the first season, and as the supply they 




40 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



brought with them ran low, they were in distress by the end of 
summer. To make matters worse chills and fevers appeared. 
This form of sickness was very prevalent in Virginia before it was 
known that malaria is transmitted by mosquitoes. By the end 
of September half the colony was dead and most of the survivors 
were shaking with ague. They were probalily saved from complete 
starvation by Captain John Smith, who manned a boat and went 

up and down the rivers trad- 
ing with the Indians. He 
brought in enough corn to 
support the colony until help 
came from England. 

Seven men were appointed 
a council to rule the settlers, 
Smith's and John Smith 
services xyas one of them. 
He was an abler man than 
any of the others, but he was 
outspoken. He criticized the 
plans of his fellow councillors 
and was accused of stirring up 
discontent. For a time he 
was excluded from the council, 
but when the suffering was 
greatest the people turned to 
him for help. By getting corn 
from the Indians he had shown his fitness to guide the colony, 
and he now became president of the council. He put an end to 
idleness by ordering that no food be given to those who would 
not work. This course was approved by the majority of the 
colonists, but there were some who complained. Nevertheless 
Smith had his way and Jamestown prospered until his departure 
in 1609. Then returned the old troubles. Idleness, quarrehng, 
and disease brought the colony to the verge of starvation. At 




Captain John Smith 



THE FIRST ENGLISH COLONY 41 

one time the people embarked for England but turned back 
near the mouth of the river when they met a new governor with 
supplies. 

In 1611 Governor Dale came to rule the colony. He was a 
hard man but a just governor, and he suppressed the idlers and 
mischief-makers in a short time. Some he found rest- Governor 
ing in their cabins, others playing bowls in the streets, ^^^le 
All were given tasks and punished if they failed to do them. If a 
man tried to leave the colony, he was severely punished. The 
people complained that they were reduced to slavery, but from 
Dale's time there was always enough food in Virginia. 

Dale was governor for five years, and within that period two 
favorable things happened. One was changing the system of 
labor. He allotted three acres of land to each of the New labor 
more important men and required a high rent for it ; system 
but all the produce above the rent was to belong to the man 
who held the land. The rest of the men had to work as before 
for the common store, but they were allowed one month in the 
year in which to raise corn for themselves. This was a small 
departure from the old system, but it worked wonders. One of 
the colonists said that a man did more work in one day when he 
knew the produce would be his than he did in a week when he knew 
that all he made would go to the company's warehouse. So well 
did the new plan work that in 1619 the common store was entirely 
given up. Land was now given to each settler. One hundred 
acres were given to each of the early settlers who still lived and 
fifty to each of the later ones. 

Another fortunate thing in Dale's time was the discovery that 

tobacco grown in Virginia would bring high prices in England. 

Before this time all the tobacco that came to Eng- _ , 

? Tobacco 
land came from the Spanish colonies. About 1612 it 

began to be raised at Jamestown by John Rolfe. He got the seed 

from the Indians, who had long had it for their own use. It was 

so scarce in London that a pound sometimes sold for as much as 



42 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



$12 of our money will buy. Evei\ybofly now wished to raise it, 
and there was danger that the people would plant so much that 
they would not have enough corn for food. Dale met this 
difficulty with his usual strictness : he ordered that no tobacco 

be planted until a suf- 
ficient amount of corn 
was assured. After 
he departed the very 
streets of Jamestown 
were green with grow- 
ing tobacco. It was a 
good thing for Virginia 
to have a crop which 
could be sold abroad 
in large quantities. 
Industrious men made 
money and some be- 
came wealthy. 

At first the Indians 
around Jamestown 
Services of were hostile. 
Pocahontas They hid in 
the long grass around 
the fort and shot 
arrows at the whites 
who strayed away from 
the towTi. Over all the 
tribes in this part of Virginia ruled Powhatan, who lived about 
eighteen miles from Jamestown. He had a young daughter named 
Pocahontas, and Captain Smith tells a story in which she saved 
his life at the risk of her own. He was taken by the savages and 
carried before the great chief, who ordered the prisoner's brains 
dashed out. As a club was uplifted to kill him Pocahontas 
darted forward, threw herself over Smith's head, and begged 




rTi'iis dcdiiaecito bt/npriicndr 



x.-;»^ 



THE FIRST ENGLISH COLONY 43 

her father to spare his Ufe. Her request was granted, and Smith 
was sent home with presents. Many people have doubted this 
story, but it is known that Pocahontas became a good friend of 
Captain Smith and that she befriended the whites in many ways. 
In 1614 she married John Rolfe, the first tobacco planter, and then 
Powhatan made a treaty of friendship which was not broken as 
long as he lived. Pocahontas went to England in 1616 and was 
received as a princess. She soon tired of the country and longed 
to see Virginia again, but she died in 1617 as she was about to 
return. The people of Virginia never forgot her services to the 
colony when it was weak and in need of help. 

After Powhatan's death the Indians showed hostility. They 
believed their lands would soon be taken from them, and they 
made secret plans to destroy the whites at one blow. Indian mas- 
The time selected was a day in March, 1622. For a sacre, 1622 
few days before attacking, the Indians visited the whites and 
showed great friendliness. Thej^ thus put their victims off' 
guard and then they struck as hard as they could. Four hundred 
whites were killed, all of them in the remote plantations. The 
survivors were not as numerous as the Indians and could not 
take the vengeance they wished. They drew back to fortified 
places on the James and planted corn. As soon as they could 
leave their crops they sallied forth, burned the Indians' houses 
and growing corn, and killed as many of the enemy as they could 
reach. But the savages did not submit. They lay in wait for 
the whites and killed those whom they could cut off. Next sum- 
mer the settlers again attacked, burning, destroying corn, and 
killing as they could. The war was renewed in 1624, and in their 
desperation the colonists used poison, hoping they might thus 
destroy men who took advantage of every stratagem to kill. 
After a while the Indians ceased to struggle, and the whites were 
able to settle in safety on the James. It was not until 1644 that 
the Indians again attacked the settlements. At that time the 
colonists were so strong that they were able to send a large force 



44 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

against their foes. Thej^ slew so many that the natives made a 
treaty and retired from the region between the James and York 
rivers. 

In 1619 a very important change occurred in the government of 
Virginia. The first colony was ruled by a council, but the coun- 
Seif-gov- cillors quarreled so much among themselves that it was 
ernment, abolished in 1609, and its place was taken by a governor, 
^^^^ who could do nearly as he pleased. This produced 

trouble also ; for the governor was not always a wise or a just 
man. In 1619 a third form of government was adopted. There 
was still a governor, and he had a council appointed in England. 
But the people were allowed to elect burgesses, or representatives, 
two from each plantation, who were to come together as a house 
of burgesses. From that time the governor, council, and house 
of burgesses were all to sit together and be known as the assembly 
of Virginia. The assembly was to make the laws. Thus the 
people gained a voice in their government. They could defeat a 
bad law, decide how they were to be taxed, and say how the money 
which came from the taxes was to be spent. It was the begin- 
ning of self-government in America. 

These reforms were made through the action of the London 
Company, which exercised authority over • Virginia. They were 
London due to the efforts of several liberal men in the com- 

Company pany, the leader being Sir Edwin Sandys. King 
destroyed James I was much opposed to the reforms and de- 
cided to destroy the company. He charged it Avith all the mis- 
fortune that had happened in Virginia, and got his high court in 
London to declare that the company should give up the colony 
into his own hands. Virginia thus became a royal province, 1624, 
and after that the king appointed the governor, council, and many 
high officers in the colony. He did not destroy the colony's 
assembly. It continued to make laws, but they could be vetoed 
by the king. After a while counties were laid out, and sheriffs 
and county courts were appointed to manage affairs in them. The 



THE FIRST ENGLISH COLONY 



45 




county officers were not elected by the people, but were appointed 
by governor and council, who were careful to name such men 
as would not oppose the king. This was the form of Royal 
government later adopted in most of the royal province 
provinces. But the county officers were men who lived in the 
colony and knew what was best for the colonists. Under them 
there was a great deal of 
prosperity and the people 
were satisfied. 

Virginia, the first English 
colony in the South, was 
the center from " Mother of 
which other States" 
colonies sprang. When it 
became a royal province, 
it belonged to the king, 
and he had the right to 
grant its territory as he chose. On the south a vast portion 
was cut off, and out of it came in time the two Carolinas 
and Georgia. On the north another portion was taken, and this 
became the colony of Maryland. Six of the states to the west 
and northwest of Virginia were once within her boundaries. It 
is because so many states have thus been made out of her ancient 
dominion that she is called "the Mother of States." 

Maryland was granted by the king of England, Charles I, to 
Lord Baltimore in 1632. The name was in honor of Henrietta 
Maria, the queen of England. Baltimore was a Cath- 
olic and wished to make the colony a place of refuge 
for those who believed as he. At that time the Catholics were 
being persecuted in England, and it was thought that they would 
come in large numbers to a place in which they encountered no 
oppression. But Baltimore wisely offered toleration to all churches, 
and it happened that a great many Protestants came to Maryland. 
They were at last in a majority, and forgetting the wise example 



Maryland 



46 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



First colony 



that had been set them, they proceeded to put restrictions on 
those who did not beheve as they. 

The first settlers in Maryland arrived in 1634 and settled at 
St. Mary's near the mouth of the Potomac. Mindful of the early 
hardships at Jamestown, they planted Indian corn 
and harvested so good a crop the first year that they 
could spare a ship load to exchange for fish at Boston. The first 

colony consisted of twenty 
gentlemen and kbout two 
hundred laborers. It 
bought from the Indians 
the land on which St. 
Mary's was established, 
and soon prosperity came 
through trade and the 
production of tobacco. 

Maryland was a pro- 
prietary colony : that is, it 
The govern- was under the 
™ent authority of the 

proprietor. Lord Balti- 
more. He owned the land 
in the colony and granted 
it to the colonists, and he 
was the head of the gov- 
ernment. The only restric- 
tion on his power was that 
he must make laws with the advice of the freemen or their 
representatives. He understood this to mean that he could 
suggest the laws which would be approved by the freemen. He 
was soon to know that he was mistaken. In 1635 the colonists 
.held an assembly and enacted a number of laws for the colony. 
Baltimore rejected them on sight. Then he sent to Maryland 
such laws as he thought the colony needed, expecting that the 




THE FIRST ENGLISH COLONY 47 

assembly would approve them. They were all rejected. He 
was a wise and well-meaning man, and he saw that he must 
yield. From that time the assembly made the laws and sent 
them to the proprietor for approval. On the other hand, he 
appointed the governor, high judges, and many other officials. 

In 1649 the parliament of England ordered the execution of 
King Charles. One of the reasons he was so unpopular was that 
he was believed to be a Catholic at heart. The parlia- Danger 
ment was strongly Protestant, and it was supreme, averted 
It was, therefore, natural that its supporters should cast suspicious 
glances at the Catholic colony of Maryland. Baltimore w^as 
greatly alarmed, lest his charter be annulled. He had more 
reason for his fears because there was stern wrangling between 
the extreme Protestants and others in Maryland itself. The 
trouble there finally led to civil war, and a sharp battle was fought 
in which victory was with the opponents of the proprietor. But 
Baltimore had great influence in England, and in 1657 the govern- 
ment there allowed him to retain the colonj^, he showing that he 
would grant toleration to all. 



QUESTIONS 

I. Describe Raleigh's first expedition to America. How did Virginia 
get its name? What was accompHshed by the second expedition? De- 
scribe the third expedition. Why was White's colony called "the lost 
colony"? Who was Virginia Dare? Why did Raleigh give up his 
efforts to settle Virginia ? Who took up his work ? 

II. What two companies were organized in England in 1606? What 
was the object ? How were the shares distributed ? How were the share- 
holders in the colony to be paid for their labor ? 

III. Describe the settlement of Jamestown. What kind of men 
were the colonists? What was the cause of the distress of the first year? 
How was it relieved? How did Smith rule the colony as president? 
What was the situation after his departure? How did Governor Dale 
rule? What was his new system of labor? Desci'ibe the introduction of 
tobacco planting. 



48 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

IV. Who was Pocahontas? How is she said to have saved the life 
of Captain Smith? What were her services to the colonists? Describe 
the Indian war of 1622. How did the whites take vengeance ? When did 
the Indians next make war on Virginia ? 

V. Describe the earliest government of Virginia? How was self- 
government introduced? Describe the new system. How was the 
London Company overthrown? What form of government took its 
place in Virginia ? Describe it. 

VI. Why was Virginia called "the mother of states"? Describe the 
origin of the Maryland colony. Describe religious toleration in Maryland. 
Describe the settlement of St. Mary's. What was a proprietary province? 
How did it differ from a royal province? How was the proprietor's 
authority limited in Maryland? How did Baltimore preserve -his charter 
in 1657 ? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Career of Sir Francis Drake ; The Spanish Armada ; The Career of 
Captain John Smith ; Criticism of Smith's Pocahontas Story ; The Plan- 
tation Life ; The Virginia Trade. 



CHAPTER V 
THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES 

Early in the seventeentii century a great many Englishmen 
wished to reform the EngUsh Church by dismissing the bishops 
and giving up some of the doctrines of the Book of Reformers 
Common Prayer. Such persons we may call the re- ^^ England 
formers. The king and most of the bishops were opposed to their 
demands and tried to force them to believe in the old way. Min- 
isters who held the reform doctrines were turned out of their 
parishes, and when they gathered their followers in private meet- 
ings, they and their hearers were thrown into prison. Some of the 
persecuted ones fled to the continent. Others went to New 
England to found colonies in which they might support themselves 
by their labor and have governments under which they could 
worship in their own way. 

They came to America in two important groups. The first 
were the separatists, who wanted to separate from the English 
Church. They thought each congregation should 
choose its own minister, and direct its affairs by a vote 
of the members. The second group were the Puritans. When 
they left England, they had not declared for separation from the 
Church but only asked that the old church be purified in some 
of its features. But when they got to New England, they adopted 
the congregational form of church government, refused to have 
bishops, and became as truly separatists as the first group. We 
must take up these two divisions separately, for each founded a 
colony, although the two colonies were later united into one. 

The separatist group arrived earliest. We first hear of them 
E 49 



50 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



EARLY 
NEW ENGLAND 
SETTLEMENTS 




at Scrooby in the eastern part of England, where they worshiped 
in secret. One of their ministers was Rev. John Robinson, a 
The exiles gentle and learned graduate of Cambridge University. 
Their meetings attracted the attention of the king's 
officers, and the people were imprisoned so often that 
they fled to Holland. The Dutch treated them kindly, but 
wages were low and they grew tired of living among foreigners; 



from 
Scrooby 



THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES 



51 



and after ten years among the Dutch it was decided to settle 
elsewhere. Some wished to return to England, notwithstanding 
the persecutions there. But the majority decided Holland and 
to go to Virginia, as all the northern part of America Virginia 
was then called. The London Company was not yet abolished 
and gladly granted them a charter. The company had the 
authority to establish colonies as far north as the forty-first degree 




Brewster's house at Scrooby 
lu the building on the left the Pilgrims held their services. 

of latitude, which falls near the northern shore of Long Island 
Sound. The Scrooby exiles expected to plant their colony in 
what is now New Jersey. 

The people were poor and had much trouble to get money to 
pay the heavy expense of going to Virginia. At last a company 
was organized with shares at ten pounds each. The Thecom- 
exiles who were able took shares, but this yielded only pany 
a small sum. Then they called on their friends in England. It 
was thought that the colony would eventually become rich, and 
with that expectation some merchants and others finally sub- 
scribed for the rest of the shares, the whole amount being seven 
thousand pounds. Each colonist was given one share for going ; 
and it was agreed that all should work together and allow the 



52 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

profits above expenses to go to a common fund which should be 
divided, at the end of seven years, according to the shares held. 

Arrangements were then made for the departure. The youngest 
and strongest were to go first to prepare a place for the others. 
The depar- In September, 1620, they set out in the Mayflower, a 
ture hired ship. They left behind them their beloved pastor, 

the faithful Robinson, who remained with the weak and aged until 
he could go with them to America. They never saw him again. 
The hearts of those who set forth were heavy, but they took comfort 
from the thought that they were under the care of God. One of 
them wrote: "They knew they were pilgrimes, and looked not 
much on those things, but lift up their eyes to the heavens, 
their dearest countrie, and quieted their spirits." They are called 
"Pilgrims" to this day. 

After sailing nine weeks the Mayflower sighted land at Cape 
Cod. She turned southward to pass that point, but ran into shoal 
Arrival at water, and the captain put back and came to anchor 
Plymouth at what is now Provincetown. The weather was bad 
and he refused to go to Virginia as he had intended. The Pilgrims 
decided to seek a proper place and plant the colony in New Eng- 
land. A small boat was sent out and returned after many days 
reporting that a place fit for settlement was foi^d. It was a small 
harbor which Captain John Smith had visited several years before 
and named Plymouth. Here the company landed on December 
16, Old Style, 1620. Near the landing place was a great boulder 
which has become famous as "Plymouth Rock." 

The weather was very cold, and the women and children re- 
mained on the Mayflower while the men worked hard on the shore 
to build log houses and to land the supplies. It was 

First winter , , , p , i ., 

soon seen that there was not enough food to last until 
a supply could be raised ; and it was necessary to put the people 
on half rations. This produced much suffering ; and after a while 
sickness visited them, when spring .came, half of the Pilgrims 
had died, among them fourteen of the eighteen women who had 



THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES 53 

sailed with the party. Those who were still alive were so weak 
that they could hardly plant the grain and build the houses that 
remained to be built. But not one was discouraged or wished to 
go back to England. 

The first year at Plymouth was a hard one. Enough corn was 
raised to feed the people during the winter, but another ship 
came with passengers who had little food, and again 
there was want. As it happened, the Indians gave no 
trouble. A few years earlier all those living near Plymouth had 
been carried off by a plague, probably smallpox. One morning 
in 1621 a single brave walked into the town crying "Welcome !" 
in English. It was Samoset, who came from Monhegan, where 
he had learned the English language from the English fishermen 
who visited that island. He proved a valuable friend to the 
colony. He brought to them another Indian, Squanto, who 
taught the whites many useful facts about planting corn and other 
crops and about catching fish in this region. North of Plymouth 
lived the Wampanoags, who showed that they wished to be 
friendly. Their chieftain was Massasoit, and in 1621 he made a 
treaty of friendship between his people and the men of Plymouth. 

To the westward lived a stronger tribe, the Narragansetts. 
They were jealous of the Wampanoags and distrusted the English. 
So they sent to Plymouth a bundle of arrows wrapped in Narragan- 
the skin of a snake. It signified war. The whites setts 
were not frightened and returned the skin stuft'ed full of bullets, 
a hint of what the Narragansetts could expect if they attacked. 
The Indians miderstood, and there Avas no more trouble from 
them. 

The governor of Plymouth was William Bradford, a man of 
great courage and wisdom. He ruled the colony many years, 
although he was elected yearly, and might have been Bradford 
replaced by another man, if the people had found him and 
a bad governor. He was much helped by Captain ^tandish 
Miles Standish, who had ])een an English soldier. Standish 



54 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

commanded a company formed out of the men who could bear 
arms. He and his soldiers were of great service ; for though they 
did not have to fight a serious war, they showed the Indians and 
some rude white men that the men of Plymouth were able to make 
themselves respected. Bradford wrote an excellent history of the 
colony. 

We have seen that before they sailed the colonists promised 
to labor in common for seven years and to give the proceeds to 
Property in the company. Experience showed that this system of 
common a labor was as bad in Plymouth as in Virginia. Those , 
failure ^^iq worked wished to have the advantage of their 

industry. The married men complained because their wives had 
to cook, wash, and mend for other men. It was not on account 
of the labor itself ; for everybody must work in Plymouth. But 
the men could not stand having their wives made common drudges 
for other men. Thus it happened that in 1623 a new agreement 
was made with the company. First, the town assumed the debt 
to the company and arranged to pay it out of the proceeds of the 
fur trade, a plan which resulted in the early payment of the debt. 
In the next place, each colonist was given a smaH farm with the 
understanding that he should have what he made. But he must 
pay his part of the town's taxes. This system proved to be a 
great deal better than the common fund. 

The land around Plymouth was poor, but the people were very 

industrious and by hard work raised all they needed. After a 

while they discovered more fertile lands not far away 
New towns 

and groups of them moved off and founded several 

towns. But for all this the settlements grew slowly. Plymouth 

Colony was important because it showed Englishmen what New 

England was like. But the real work of settling the country was 

done by another colony. 

When the Pilgrims decided to settle at Plymouth, they realized 

that the charter they had received from the London Company 

was valueless. They were within the limits of the Plymouth 




^ L c 

-^ .,^ — - ■"' "2"' '" "" V ' "'■l-J'--^ --It- .*\>^/(i 



THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES 55 

Company, founded in 1606 ; but it would take a long time to 
get from it a charter under which they could have a legal form 
of government. To meet this difficulty they drew up Thg May- 
the celebrated Mayflower compact, and each adult free flower 
man signed it before the Pilgrims went ashore. It was compact 
a simple pledge that all would live as obedient citizens in one 
government, and that they would make their own laws and elect 
their own officers. At this time the Plymouth Company was 
being reorganized. From its successors the men of Plymouth 
got a patent enabling them to own their lands, but no charter was 
issued. The result was that the colony continued to exist under 
the Mayflower compact until Plymouth was united with Massa- 
chusetts in 169L 

In the early years of Plymouth's history British fishing and 
trading ships were frequently in the New England waters, and 
several trading stations were established on the coast Endicott's 
north of the town. Ships made good profits trading charter 
for fur with the Indians. In 1628 six men, one of whom was 
John Endicott, got a charter to settle a colony on the shore of 
Massachusetts Bay, between the Merrimac and Charles rivers. 
Endicott came over with a small band and founded a town at 
Salem. He and most of his company were Puritans, but when 
they got the charter, they did not expect to establish a home for 
people of that faith. They would have been glad to get settlers 
of any kind. 

Under Endicott's charter was settled the Massachusetts Bay 
Colony, and the way it came to be a refuge for Puritans is as 
follows: Charles I, king of England, wished to take -v^rhypuri. 
taxes without the consent of parliament. Some inde- tans left 
pendent men refused to pay and were imprisoned for re- England : 
fusing. The majority of the people sympathized with 
them ; for it is a tradition dear to the hearts of Englishmen and 
Americans that no taxes shall be taken without the consent of 
the taxpayers. War finally began between the king and the people 



56 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



and the result was that the king was beheaded. Since that time 
no Enghsh king has tried to get taxes without the consent of 
parhament. 

All this was a civil affair, but it was connected with religion. 
The Puritans were for the parliamentary side and loved liberty. 
2. A home The king and Archbishop Laud, rulers of the English 
for Puritan- Church, realized that those who would not obey in reli- 
*^™ gious affairs would not obey in affairs of state ; and 

they tried to stamp out Puritanism. Thus, two things led the 

Puritans to come to New Eng- 
land: the desire to escape the 
king's unlawful power and the 
iiope of establishing a state in 
which the Puritan faith would 
be the religion of the people. 

In 1628, when the Massa- 
chusetts Ba}^ Colony was 
created, the struggle 
against the king was 
just beginning. A 
numl)er of Puritans 
thought it would be well to 
leave England and establish a 
colony in which their own form 
of worship would be the rule. 
The leader of the movement was John Winthrop, a learned and 
wise member of the country gentleman class. He and some 
friends signed a paper at Cambridge, England, known as the 
Cambridge agreement, pledging themselves to move to New 
England and to carry as many others with them as they could. 
He then made an arrangement with the company that held 
Endicott's charter. He and his friends joined the company, and 
all the members agreed to go to New England and carry the 
charter with them. Other companies had remained in England 




John Win- 
throp s 
shrewd 
move 



Governor John Winthrop 



THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES 



57 



Charlestown 



governing the colonies they sent out. In tlie Massachusetts 
colony the company was on the spot. All the colonists were 
members of the company ; and thus the people governed them- 
selves when the company made rules for its own affairs. As 
we shall see, the company became a very large number of people. 
It was the citizens of Massachusetts. 

All this happened in 1629, and early next year Winthrop sailed 
for America. His efforts to get friends to go with him were very 
successful, and he was accompanied by nine hundred 
persons in eleven ships. Salem did not please him, and 
he came in the summer of 1630 to the mouth of the Charles River, 
where he landed and established a 
town called Charlestown. We must 
remember that a settlement in such 
conditions was only a collection of 
farmhouses with a stockade around 
them and the farms lying at con- 
venient distance around the town. 
If there were many people, the farms 
would lie so far off that the people liv- 
ing within the walls could not go to 
them easily. They did not at this 
time dare build their homes on their 
farms, because of danger from Indian 
attacks. Thus it happened that nine hundred persons could 
not conveniently live at Charlestown. They divided into three 
other groups. One crossed the Charles and settled on a slope 
where there were three hills and an excellent spring. Boston and 
They called the place Boston. The other two settled other towns 
further off, at Dorchester and Watertown. As new settlers 
arrived thej' settled in other farming towns, and soon there were 
many such places in Massachusetts. 

While the Puritans were persecuted in England a great many of 
them continued to come to Massachusetts. In 1643 there were 




Massachusetts Bay 



58 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

16,000 people in the colony, and very few of them were not of 
the one faith. At this time war began between the king and 
Rapid parliament, and the tide of emigration slackened, 

growth of While men fought to break down the great power of 
the colony ^j^^ king, all who favored self-governmient were needed 
at home. After the war was over the king did not try again to 
hold the same amount of power, and the rapid emigration of the 
early days never came back. 

A New England town was not a mere collection of houses with 
the small farms around it. It was also the land Ijang around the 
What a town houses for several miles. It was as large as two or 
was like three of our western townships, and about half or a 
third as large as one of our southern counties. When the people 
living in the center became numerous, a part of them would 
establish a village in another part of the to^vn. In time a large 
town would be divided into two or more towns. The people 
settled their affairs' in a town meeting, in which all men who 
were members of the church were allowed to vote. Here they 
laid the town taxes, elected town officers, and took steps to build 
roads and bridges. 

At first all the voters might go to Boston and vote on the affairs 
of the company in a great meeting known as the general court. 
The general But this was inconvenient for those who lived in dis- 
court tant towns, and so it was decided that each town 

should choose delegates to the general court, which thus became a 
representative assembly. The general court elected the governor 
annually. It also elected the councilors, who had the right to 
assent to laws. The government of Massachusetts 
had a larger number of elective offices than the govern- 
ment of Virginia. 

In each town the minister had a great deal of authority. His 
Influence of salary was paid by the town, out of the money received 
the minister from the taxes, and he was looked to for advice in 
all matters of importance. As none but church members voted, 



THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES 59 

it was very hard for a man to be elected if the minister pro- 
nounced him unfit for office. The union of church and state 
then existed in most of the countries of the world, and the Puri- 
tans only follow the general rule. 

But there were at that time a few men in England who held the 
view which has later become prevalent in America. They be- 
lieved that the state should have authority solely over views of 
secular matters, and that church authorities should con- Roger 
trol in religious things. One of these men in New Eng- Williams 
land was Roger Williams, minister at Salem. He taught that 
civil officers should not enforce the laws of the church, that it was 
wrong to require an unconverted man to take an oath, and that 
the whites had no right to take the land in the colony until they 
got the consent of the Indians. The first of these doctrines 
was directly opposed to the Puritan system in the colony. Wil- 
liams was called into court, and when he refused to give up his 
doctrine, it was decided to send him into exile. It was then, 

late in 1635, and he was told that he might stay until „. 

, . T^ , 1 ^ 1 1 His colony 

the wmter was gone. But when the oincers learned 

that he was gathering a group of followers to found a colony among 
the Indians, orders were given to arrest him and send him to Eng- 
land at once. Hearing of this, he fled over the snow to the Nar- 
ragansett Indians, who received him kindly. In the spring of 
1636 many of his friends came to him, and he settled the town of 
Providence on land he purchased from the Narragansetts. It was 
the beginning of a new colony. 

Another person who gave the Puritan churches trouble was 
Mrs. Anne Hutchinson. She did not deny the right of the gov- 
ernment to regulate religion, but she thought she had Mrs. Hutch- 
received a superior doctrine directly from God. She ^'^^^'^ 
preached it fervently and had many followers, which tended to 
weaken the Puritan churches. Mrs. Hutchinson was a very 
fervent teacher of her doctrine, and in her earnestness she was led 
to say that the ministers who did not accept her teaching were 



60 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

not possessed of the grace of God. She was very popular in 
Boston, but the ministers of the other towns were against her. 
In 1637 she was summoned before the general court, which 
ordered her sent into exile. The next spring she went with a 
The Rhode large number of others to Rhode Island, where a settle- 
isiand ment sprang up. Later on, Providence and Rhode 

colony Island were united into one colony, which was wisely 

directed by Roger Williams for nearly fifty years. It was always 
a place in which any form of religion would be tolerated. 

The Massachusetts Puritans, so recently persecuted in Eng- 
land, thus became persecutors of others. It was a day when 
A word for most countries held that there should be only one reli- 
the Puritans gion ; and the Puritans had come to New England to 
make their doctrine the one faith of Massachusetts. It would 
have been a fine thing if they had been more liberal, but we must 
not demand that they should be ahead of the other civihzed nations 
of the day. They founded a home for their faith at the cost of 
much hardship, and they Avere determined that no other belief 
should spring up within it. They feared, also, that the existence 
of many sects in the colony would give it a bad reputation in Eng- 
land and might lead the king to take away the charter under which 
the colony had self-government. 

What is now Connecticut was settled in three small colonies. 
The first was composed of three towns on the Connecticut 
River, Windsor, Hartford, and Wethersfield, and was 
settled about 1636. The towns were outside the 
colony of Massachusetts, and as they had no charter of their own 
they proceeded to form a plan under which they governed them- 
selves. In 1639 they adopted a written constitution, the first in 
America, in which there was to be a governor elected annually 
and a law-making assembly to which the towns would send dele- 
gates. Although the river towns were settled by Puritans, a 
man did not have to be a church member in order to vote. In 
this respect the river towns were more liberal than Massachusetts. 



THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES 



61 



Saybrook 



New Haven 



The second small colony was planted at the mouth of the Con- 
necticut River. In 1631 several gentlemen in England got a 
grant for this region, among them being Lord Brooke 
and Lord Saye and Sele. Four years later a fort was 
erected at the mouth of the river and called Saybrook, after 
these two proprietors. Later a to^vn was built near the fort. 
The enterprise was not prosperous, and ten years after settlement 
it was united with the river towns and the 
joint colony was called Connecticut. 

West of Saybrook still another group of 
towns grew up. The most important of 
them was New Haven, which 
was settled first. To it came a 
group of English Puritans who wished to 
have a colony in which they could be gov- 
erned strictly in accordance with the teach- 
ings of the Bible. They had no [charter 
•and established a very democratic govern- 
ment. Once a year the freemen elected 
the governor and a council. For a long 
time the governor ruled in accordance with 
what he thought was the biblical way. Under this system the 
New Haven colony lived happily and prospered. 

Several other towns were founded along the shore of the sound 
west of New Haven. At first they were independent, but when 
there was a probability that the Indians would attack, Connecticut 
they were glad to join with New Haven. Neither Con- united 
necticut nor New Haven existed by authority from the king, but 
in 1662 King Charles II issued a charter by which Connecticut and 
New Haven were joined into one, with a liberal form of govern- 
ment. The Connecticut charter was so satisfactory that it 
became the constitution of the state when the colonies threw off 
their allegiance to England. 

While the Connecticut settlements were being established a 




Connecticut settlements 



62 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

fierce war broke out with the Indians. The shore between Narra- 
gansett Bay and the Hudson River was the home of three groups 
Three In- of savages. The Narragansetts on the east lived in 
dian nations what is now western Rhode Island and eastern Con- 
necticut. The Mohegans lived in the region from New Haven 
to New York. In the country between these two extremes lived 
the Pequots on the lower Connecticut River. The first and second 
groups were peaceable and gave the whites no trouble. The 
Pequots were a fierce nation, and they were not willing to be friends 
with the colonists. In 1636 they began war by killing a white 
man who had l^een sent from Boston to collect tribute from them. 
Then an armed band came from INIassachusetts and destroyed 
some of the Pequot villages. The people of Connecticut declared 
War against tills action unnecessary and predicted that much suffer- 
the Pe- ing would ensue. Their words came true ; for in the 

^"°*^ spring of 1637 the Indians fell on Wethersfield, near 

Hartford, and killed several whites and many cattle. Then they 
besieged Saybrook, boasting that "Englishmen were as easy to 
kill as mosquitoes." They urged the Narragansetts to join them 
in an effort to drive every white man from Connecticut, but Roger 
Williams heard of their plans and induced the Narragansetts not 
only to remain at peace, but to send some of their young men to 
help in the attack on the Pequots. 

The whites armed as rapidl}^ as possible. Ninety men from 
the river towns assembled under Captain John Mason and set out 
The fort on in May, 1637, with two hundred and eighty friendly In- 
the Mystic dians, to punish the hostiles, coming upon them in a fort 
on the bank of the Mystic River. The Pequots could not with- 
stand the firearms of the whites. They fought desperately, but 
were defeated. The whites threw blazing torches into the wigwams 
within the fort and shot down Indians who tried to escape. Men, 
women, and children fell as they darted out or were roasted in 
the burning wigwams. Of the four hundred persons who took 
refuge in the fort seven escaped to the forest and seven were taken 



THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES 



63 



alive. The rest were killed. Only two white men lost their 
hves. 

The lot of the Pequot Indians was now hard. They dared not 
meet the settlers, and they could not take refuge with their ancient 
enemies, the Narragansetts and the Mohegans. In End of the 
despair they attempted to reach the Mohawks, west "^^^ 
of the Hudson. They were pursued and overtaken near the site 



New England '"'' 




Pequot fort 

of New Haven. They took refuge in a swamp and tried to beat 
off their enemy, but were defeated with great loss. Sassacus, their 
leader, whom other Indians thought a man with a charmed life, 
managed to escape, but the Mohawks cut off his head and sent it 
to the settlers on the Connecticut. They did not wish to incur the 



64 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

enmity of men who were able to destroy the last vestige of a power- 
ful tribe. It was many years before New England had another 
Indian war. 

While these things happened in Connecticut a number of small 
towns Avere being settled on the coast north of Massachusetts. 
Gorges and Some of them were inhabited by people who had fled 
Mason from the severe rule of the Puritans in Massachusetts. 

Most of the northern coast had been granted to Gorges and 
Mason, two Englishmen of great influence, who expected to derive 
a profit from establishing colonies. Mason took the country 
south and west of the Piscataqua, while Gorges got the region 
lying between that river and the Kennebec. East of the 
Kennebec the country was unsettled for a long time. Mason's 
grant was called New Hampshire and Gorges's was called 
Maine. 

Neither man was willing to spend much money to send people 
to his colony. The result was that the towns which were estab- 
NewHamp- lished paid little respect to their overlords. They did 
shire what they pleased, and there was a pretty state of con- 

fusion. Mason died in 1635, and his heirs allowed the towns to 
shift for themselves. Massachusetts had long claimed that 
New Hampshire fell within the bounds of her charter and now 
stepped in to rule the towns on the coast. The people were so 
tired of the confusion that they raised no objection. They were 
glad to be under a power strong enough to keep order and furnish 
protection against the Indians. 

In 1647 Gorges died also ; and Massachusetts did for Maine 

what she had done for New Hampshire. By her charter her 

northern boundary was to be three miles north of any 
Maine cin/r- *i c t • • 

part 01 the Merrimac. As the source of this river is well 

up in New Hampshire, Massachusetts made this the starting 

point for a line which was to extend eastward to Saco Bay. Her 

jurisdiction over both colonies was disputed. New Hampshire 

was finally taken out of her hands by the king, but as she had pur- 



THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES 65 

chased all the rights of the Gorges heirs, she managed to keep 
Maine. Later she secured full title to the coast east of the Kenne- 
bec. 

The area which now includes Massachusetts, Rhode Island, 
and Connecticut is less than one third as large as Pennsylvania. 
In 1643 it was divided into five colonies, each of which NewEng- 
was so small that it could not hope to win in a war with land Con- 
the Indians. In this year there was a rumor that the *^°^''^*io" 
savage tribes had made a league to destroy the whites. To meet 
this danger Massachusetts, Plymouth, New Haven, and Connect- 
icut formed the New England Confederation. It was a league 
for common defense. There were to be two commissioners from 
each colony, and they were to decide when the confederation 
should go to war and how much each colony should contribute to the 
common cause. Rhode Island was considered a home of undesir- 
able people and was not asked to join the confederation. The 
service of Roger Williams in inducing the Narragansetts to re- 
frain from joining the Pequots in war against the whites was now 
forgotten. But Williams was still alive, and his friendship with 
the Indians was so great that they were not likely to attack his 
colony. 

For several years the confederation was very prosperous. It 
either overawed the Indians or the rumor that they were plotting 
a massacre of the whites was false. When the danger 

1 1 • 1 c II ^^^ history 

seemed past, the colonies began to tall out among them- 
selves. Massachusetts, the largest of the group, felt that the 
other colonies, having six of the eight commissioners, threw on 
her shoulders more of the burdens than justly fell to her. The 
other colonies replied that Massachusetts was satisfied if onlj^ her 
own interests were protected, and that she cared little for the 
safety of the smaller colonies. These suspicions and bickerings 
marred the usefulness of the confederation, and it became a weak 
force for peace. It was revived to take up the defense of the 
colonies during King Philip's war, 1675-1676, but it decUned after 



66 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

the war and came to an end in 1684. The truth is that by 1676 
the colonies were so strong that they no longer needed to unite 
against the Indians. 

QUESTIONS 

I. Describe the English reUgious reformers of the early seventeenth 
century. What induced some of them to leave England? Into what 
groups were they divided? Describe each group. 

II. Relate the story of the Scrooby separatists before they sailed for 
America. How did they arrange to remove to the new world? What 
peculiar form of labor was adopted? Describe the voyage of the May- 
flower. Why were these colonists called Pilgrims? Describe the landing 
at Plymouth. What were the experiences of the first winter? Describe 
the relation of the colonists with the Indians. 

III. What did Bradford do for the colony? Miles Standish? How 
did the original system of labor come to an end? Why did Plymouth 
grow slowly? What was the Mayflower compa^ct? How long was it in 
use? Why could the colony not get a charter? 

IV. How was Salem founded? How did Massachusetts become a 
Puritan colony? Explain the origin of the Puritan migration to Massa- 
chusetts. What did John Winthrop do for the colony? What was the 
Cambridge agreement ? Describe the effect of the removal of the charter 
to New England. 

V. Describe the settlement of Charlestown and Boston. Why were 
the early towns small? How did the war in England affect emigration 
to Massachusetts? What was a New England town like? How was it 
governed? Describe the general court of Massachusetts. Describe the 
influence of the ministers in poUtics. 

VI. What is meant by the union of church and state? Give the views 
of Roger Williams. How did he come to leave Massachusetts? Where 
did he settle? Describe the expulsion of Mrs. Hutchinson. What 
settlement did she found? How did the Rhode Island colony come 
into existence ? Why did Massachusetts refuse to tolerate persons who did 
not accept the Puritan faith ? 

VII. What Indian tribes hved in southern New England? Describe 
the origin and the early stage of the Pequot war. What services did 
Roger WiUiams render in this war? How, were the Pequots defeated? 
What became of the tribe? 

VIII. What region was granted to Gorges and Mason? Describe 
the conditions in early New Hampshire. What claim did Massachusetts 



THE NEW ENGLAND COLONIES 67 

have over the New Hampshire settlements? How did she lose her 
claim ? On what ground did she claim Maine ? How did she finally get 
control of it? 

IX. What was the New England Confederation? How formed? 
Its attitude toward Rhode Island? What part did it take in King 
PhiUp's war? Why was it abandoned? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Voyage of the May/lower ; John Winthrop as a Colony Founder ; 
The Work of Roger Williams ; The War against the Pequots ; New England 
Town Government. 



First needs 



CHAPTER \T 

LIFE IN THE EARLIEST COLONIES 

Before we go further into the story of the establishment of the 
English in America we must stop long enough to see how the 

settlers took up the tasks 
confronting them. Awaiting 
them was a forest-clad country, into 
which they must force their way by hard 
efforts. There must be villages and 
farms in order that the people might 
get a foothold, and food must be raised 
on the newly cleared lands. For cloth- 
ing, tools, furniture, and a hundred 
other things that they needed to make 
life comfortable they must look to Eng- 
land. And to be able to bring over 
such things there must be some kind of 
Food and trade. It was a happy day 
trade for Virginia when it was dis- 

covered that tobacco could be raised 
in the colony ; for now there was a 
crop which yielded money with which 
merchandise could be purchased. To have trade with Europe a 
colony must raise something that could be sold in Europe. 

We have seen that Virginia and Massachusetts were the centers 
from which settlements spread to the surrounding 
country. Each was different from the other and each 
gave its own customs to the adjoining colonies. The Virginia life 

68 




A child's high chair, about 1650 



Two centers 



LIFE IN THE EARLIEST COLONIES 69 

tended to be the rule in the South, where plantations were large, 
and their owners became wealthy. The Massachusetts life 
tended to become the rule in the North, where the farms were 
small and the men of wealth were usually engaged in some form 
of trade. This chapter deals with life in these two central colo- 
nies. 

When the London Company sent out their colony to Jamestown, 
Spain had been a colonial power for more than a hundred years. 
Her sugar-growing colonies were prosperous, and she Gold 
had received vast treasures in gold and silver from hunters 
Mexico and Peru. Spanish gentlemen had gone to Spanish 
America with nothing but their swords, and in a few years they 
amassed large fortunes. It was natural, therefore, for the English 
company to think that something of the same nature might be done 
in Virginia. That is why the first colony contained so large a 
number of gentlemen. It took but a short time to show them 
that there was no gold near Jamesto^vn. 

In fact, the work before the colonists was purely agricultural. 
They must clear fields and raise food, work for which the gold 
seekers were not fitted. Year by year ships arrived Laborers 
with newcomers, but disease, want, and despair kept needed 
the number at a mere handful. In seventeen years 14,000 per- 
sons arrived in the colony, and at the end of that time but few 
more than 1000 were living. Many lives were sacrificed to learn 
that Virginia was only to be settled by men who knew how to 
labor with their hands. 

Like most of the other rivers in America the James is bordered 
by rich low-grounds behind which rise less fertile highlands. The 
first comers took up the low-grounds in small strips, lo^^- 
They built houses of logs and cleared away the sur- grounds 
rounding forests as rapidly as they could. Indian corn ^"^ *^°™ 
proved a great blessing to the frontiersman. It grows easily in 
newly cleared land, whereas wheat cannot be cultivated satisfac- 
torily until the land has been entirely cleared of trees. The whites 



70 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

learned from the Indians how to kill the trees by chopping circles 
around the trunks. Then they dug up the undergrowth by the 
roots and dropped the seed corn into the soft earth. The plants 
grew well and yielded good crops under such tillage. Indian 
corn has this other advantage over wheat : it can be left several 
weeks on the stalk after it is mature, while wheat must be har- 
vested at once. 

There was much experimenting to see what crops could be grown 
successfully. The mild climate of the South and the presence 
Silk and of wild mulberry trees suggested that silkworms would 
tobacco thrive. The king of England welcomed the sugges- 

tion. It was his idea that the colonies ought not to raise the 
things England produced, since that would lower the prices 
received by the English producers. But if the colonists could 
produce silk, or anything else that was not made in England, it 
would make it unnecessary to import such articles from abroad, 
and by this means British money would be kept within the bounds 
of the empire. The attempt to raise silk was thwarted by finding 
that growing tobacco was a more profitable industry. 

A few years of tobacco growing made a great difference in the 
life of the people. Men who made good crops and saved their 
Thepianta- money began to be richer than others. They bought 
tions up several of the small farms, and so appeared the 

large plantations along the rivers. The log houses were replaced 
by houses of boards or brick. Handsome furniture and silver 
plate were ordered from England. Virginia plantations and 
planters thus came into being. A small plantation might have 
no more than four hundred acres, but a large one might contain 
four thousand. There was an abundance of good land on the 
rivers, and it could be bought cheap. 

Every autumn many ships would come into the Virginia rivers 
No large to take the tobacco to England. Each great planter 
towns had his own wharf at which the vessels were loaded. 

The crop would be sent to some English merchant, and along 



LIFE IN THE EARLIEST COLONIES 



71 



with it would go an order for clothing, furniture, tools, and any- 
thing else the planter needed. When the ships came for more 
tobacco, they brought the merchandise that had been ordered on 
the preceding trip. The small farmers raised tobacco also, but in 



I 




small quantities. They could not afford to send it to London and 
order goods as the great planters did. So it came about that 
the planters generally established stores at their wharves, bought 
the tobacco of the small farmers, and sold them the merchandise 
needed on the small farms. In this way it happened that no large 
towns were established in the colony. 



72 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

Another result was that tobacco became the money of the 
colony. The planter paid for his English goods in tobacco. He 
Tobacco as sold goods throughout the year at his store and was 
money paid in the autumn in tobacco. Very little specie came 

back from England in payment for the year's crop, and so there 
Avas very little to circulate among the people. They soon got 
used to this condition and were satisfied to make their bargains 
in tobacco. About the year 1700 an ox was sold for four hundred 
pounds of tobacco, and fourteen hundred pounds were paid a 
man for a year's labor. The small amount of specie in the colony 
served for pocket change. 

Some of the Virginia colonists belonged to the gentry in England, 

but many were small farmers or poor men from the toAvns. Those 

of the gentrv who survived early hardships were natu- 
The planters ,,,,.' • , , r ^ 

rally leadmg men m the colony, tor they were the most 

intelligent class and they had the respect of the others. They 
came to the top in the planter class and became local officers, and 
their opinions were followed by the rest of the people. It was 
natural for these men to try to make their plantation life like the 
life on the manors in England. They gave names to their homes 
like the names of the estates beyond the ocean. "Westover," 
"Lower Brandon," and "Shirley" were famous old homes on the 
James, while "Eltham" on the York, and "Mount Vernon" on 
the Potomac were also very well known in colonial times. When 
the Puritans in England defeated King Charles and beheaded him 
in 1649, many of his followers of the gentry fled to Virginia. 
They added to the tendency to establish an aristocracy there. 
As time passed many a man of the poorer class became rich through 
industry, thrift, and good judgment. Such persons were eventu- 
ally received into the planter class. But with all Virginians the 
ideal life was that of the English country gentleman, and Vir- 
ginians who rose in life, wherever they lived, in their own colony or 
in one of the other colonies to which they moved, tried to reproduce 
the plantation life that was first seen in the homes along the James. 



LIFE IN THE EARLIEST COLONIES 73 

As soon as the colony began to grow prosperous there was a 
demand for more labor than the colonists themselves could fur- 
nish. A man who had a large plantation could make Laborers 
a great deal of tobacco if he only had enough laborers, wanted 
The planters sent orders to their agents in England urging them 
to send over all the laborers who could be induced to go to Virginia. 
Attractive notices were published in the English towns, setting 
forth in glowing colors what an industrious workingman could 
make in Virginia. He need not have enough money to pay his 
passage. The captain of some Virginia-bound ship would take 
him, if he would sign a contract to work for the captain three or 
four years. When the ship arrived in Virginia, the captain would 
transfer his contract to a planter, who would pay the servant's 
passage money. When the ship arrived in the James River, the 
planters would come down to see what laborers could thus be 
secured. When such a laborer had served the planter indented 
for the term agreed upon, he was given clothing and servants 
a good gun, and from the colony he received fifty acres of land. 
Under these circumstances many laborers went to the Southern 
and Middle colonies. They were called indented servants be- 
cause the agreement they signed was an indenture. 

But this method did not secure all the laborers the planters 
needed, and the captains got into the habit of kidnapping children, 
and sometimes adults, and taking them to the colonies. 
Such persons would be enticed on board just before 
sailing time, and frequently the ship would be on her way out of the 
harbor before the victims knew whither they were bound. Kid- 
napped children were sold in the colonies to serve until twenty-one 
years of age. Some of these children found good masters and be- 
came important men when they were of age. Most of them never 
rose beyond the condition of poor men. 

Another way of getting laborers was to send certain classes 
of criminals to the colonies, where, it was hoped, they might re- 
form and become useful citizens. Pickpockets, persons convicted 



74 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

of petty theft, and brawlers were sent to the colonies. When they 
arrived, the planters bought their services from the captains 
who brought them over, as other indented servants. 
The law stipulated how long they should serve, and 
when the term expired, they were furnished with land, and many 
of them settled down into steady lives. No large part of the 
indented servants came from this criminal class. 

In Pennsjdvania and Maryland the term "redemptioner" was 
used for an indented servant. A great many Germans arrived 
Redemp- in these colonies without the means of paying their pas- 
tioners sage. They were sold to speculators by the captains 

who brought them, and then carried in unhappy droves through 
the farming communities until they were sold to the farmers 
for terms of years. While there was much suffering in this class, 
it is probable that the redemptioners, like most of the other in- 
dented servants, were better off in America than in their old 
homes. When their service was completed, they had the oppor- 
tunity to become landowners, and that was more than they 
could have done in Europe, where they were generally peasants. 

In 1619 a few African slaves were carried to Virginia to see if 
they could be used as successfully as in the Spanish colonies. 
They knew nothing about the white man's methods of 
labor and were hard to teach. The colonists did not 
Uke the experiment, and for many years very few were imported. 
Meanwhile, the planters tried to get on with indented servants. 
This was a bad system for the employer ; for as the servants com- 
pleted their terms of service others must be found to take their 
places. The advantage of slavery was that it enabled the planters 
to have a permanent laboring class. As time passed it was ob- 
served that the slaves who were born in Virginia were more easily 
managed and worked better. They were never as good laborers 
as white men, but they were generally accepted as the best that 
could be got, and after about 1660 they began to be used freely. 
After 1700 they became the most common form of labor on the 



LIFE IN THE EARLIEST COLONIES 75 

plantations of the South. They were never largely used on the 
farms north of Maryland. The Northern farms were generally 
small and were worked by the owners and one or two 
hired men. Slaves were found in these colonies in 
small numbers, but they were mostly in the towns, where they 
were used as domestic servants or unskilled laborers. For many 
years the Virginians showed that they regretted the presence 
of slaves in their midst. Several times the assembly voted to 
have no more brought in, but the king vetoed the laws. 

Two very important results followed from the introduction of 
slavery into the South. One was the wide use of slave labor. It 
divided the country into two hostile sides and led to a 

Two results 

great war. The other was that it brought into the 
United States a great many Africans, people of very little prog- 
ress and intelligence. It would have been better for the peace 
and harmony of our country if all who came here had been white 
men. 

The first colonists in Virginia settled along the James River. 
Soon they began to take up land along the York, a few miles 
north of the James. After a while the settlers ap- Rivers, 
peared on the Rappahannock and then on the Potomac, roads, and 
The rivers served as a means of traveling from one place ^^^ 
to another. If a planter entertained his friends, boats would 
bring most of the guests. It was easier to go by water than to 
cut roads through the forests. As the plantations were large there 
were long distances between the residences of the owners. The 
land was cheap and the planters had a tendency to buy more than 
they could cultivate. Population in the South was not as dense as 
in the Middle and New England colonies. 

Tobacco was a staple crop in Virginia and in Maryland. This 
means that it was a crop raised for sale in large quantities. How 
to grow it and how it would sell became the chief con- a staple 
cern of the people. Enough land must be given to "op 
raising food to supply the master and his servants, but all the 



76 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

rest that could be cultivated was planted in tobacco. If the crop 
failed, there was a year of suffering. We have had other staple 
crops, as rice in South Carolina, sugar in Louisiana, cotton in the 
South, and wheat and corn in some parts of the West. 

So well did tobacco satisfy the Virginians that they did not try 
to have any but the simplest kind of manufactures. There were 
Home water mills for grinding corn and wheat ; but they 

manufac- merely supplied the needs of the neighborhoods in 
^^^^^ which they were located. Every settlement had its 

tanner, shoemaker, saddler, cabinetmaker, and hatter. There 
were hand looms on which the Virginia flax and wool were made 
into cloth. But the products from all were of the coarser kind. 
They were used by the poorer whites and the slaves, and for the 
simpler uses of the well-to-do people. Finer goods, as well as the 
implements of field and home, were ordered from England. 

If we turn to earlj^ New England life, we find that it was similar 
in some respects to life in Virginia, and in other respects greatly 
No staple different. There, as in Virginia, the first things to do 
crop were to build houses, clear fields, and produce food for 

the settlers. Cattle must be introduced, mills must be erected, 
and something must be made which could l)e sent to England 
to exchange for the articles which could not be produced in New 
England. The farms were not adapted to any staple crop. They 
yielded wheat and vegetables, but these were raised in England 
so abundantly that it did not pay to send them thither. The 
New Englanders were quick-witted, and since they could not se- 
cure out of their farms a supply of money for buying merchandise, 
they sought other means of getting it. 

The first thing they turned to was the fur trade. Fur-bearing 
animals abounded in the cold North, and the Indians knew hoAV 
The fur to trap them. The white men stimulated the natives 

trade to hunt, offering them hatchets, trinkets, and blankets 

in exchange for skins. The profits of this kind of commerce were 
large, and the traders went far and wide in search of skins. The 



LIFE IN THE EARLIEST COLONIES 77 

Indians soon became dependent on the trade. Having learned the 
use of guns, hatchets, and blankets, they never seemed to have 
enough of them. 

The fur trade led the New Englanders to enter a still wider 
field of commerce. We have seen that the Virginia planters sent 
their tobacco to England from their plantation wharves. The coast- 
But there were in the colony many small farmers on wise trade 
isolated creeks or tributary rivers who could not afford to ship 
to England. They might sell their crop to the large planters, 
most of whom had plantation stores, but they had to take such 
prices as they could get. To them came the New Englanders 
in small vessels filled with general merchandise, selling what the 
farmer needed and taking for it tobacco or other products in small 
quantities. It was peddling Ijy water, but it was profitable, and 
the New Englanders developed great keenness in it, not only in 
Virginia, but in all other parts of the South. 

The great planters objected to such trade, since it lessened the 
profits of their oAvn traffic. They called the New Englanders 
''interlopers." The New Englanders appeared in all " inter- 
file colonies as soon as settlements were planted, lopers " 
They also appeared in the West Indies, where there was a staple 
crop, sugar, and where very little else was grown. It was prof- 
itable to sell beef, pork, fish, and vegetables to the sugar growers, 
who preferred to give all their time to raising sugar. The New 
England traders became very skillful in finding markets for their 
goods, and they made much money. Thus there grew up in the 
towns along the New England coast a class of rich merchants 
who had great influence in the colonies. 

One of the most profitable forms of business was fishing. When 
the colonists arrived at Plymouth, the cod was found in the bay 
before the town. It has special value because when 
salted it keeps better than most other fish. The earliest 
colonists took the cod in small boats fishing near the shore. After 
a time the stock in these waters was exhausted, but the fisher- 



78 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

men were bold and followed the cod northward. Finally they 
had to go beyond the coast of Maine to find any. A large number 
of fishermen were engaged in this calling throughout the colonial 
period. The cod fisheries trained a hardy sailor people who were 
of great importance in the commercial life of New England. 

Another form of fishing was taking the whales. These great 
animals were numerous off the island of Nantucket. They were 
Whale valued for their oil, which was highly esteemed for lamps 

fishing before coal oil was used. New England whalers were 

as enterprising as the codfishers. They sought the whales in 
every ocean. Sometimes they were as far north as the coast 
of Greenland, at other times they were as far south as Cape Horn, 
and they finally were found in large numbers in the northern 
Pacific Ocean, off the shores of Alaska. There was no sea too 
stormy for their ships, if only the whales were there. Two, three, 
or four years were not too long for a whaler's voyage ; and many 
adventures were encountered in their journeys. When a school 
of whales was seen, the whaling ship came among them. Then the 
sailors took to the small boats, rowing alongside the whales with 
harpoon in hand. Once the sharp instrument was fastened in its 
victim the object was to tire him to his death, as one exhausts a 
trout. Sometimes the whale would sink many hundreds of feet 
in the ocean in order to escape. Then the harpoon's line would 
be played out. If it was not long enough, it must be cut loose, or 
the boat would be drawn below the surface. Sometimes the 
whale would flee, dragging the boat after him for several miles. 
Incidents are recorded in which the infuriated animal crushed the 
boat in his great jaws and drowned the occupants. When at last 
the whale was at the end of his strength, he was killed and towed 
to the ship's side, where the valuable parts, the fat and the whale- 
bone, were cut out and taken aboard. 

The New Englanders sold few manufactured articles, in colonial 
days. To understand why that was, we must remember that at 
this time factories had not developed in Europe. The machinery 



LIFE IN THE EARLIEST COLONIES 79 

then used in weaving, spinning, and in most of the other Unes of 
manufacturing was hand machinery. Charcoal made of wood 
was burned in smelting iron ores, and steam power had Hand manu- 
not been thought of. Whole villages in England were factures 
engaged in spinning or weaving by hand. The New England 
colonists contained many men who in England had been engaged 
in this kind of manufacturing. In their new homes they con- 
tinued to make things they thought they could sell. The long 
winters were frequently spent in such work as they could carry 
on in their barns. Thus, the New England farmers became 
very clever in the use of tools, and in later times their skill with 
them resulted in much inventiveness. 

Another source of money was the vast timber supply, especially 
abundant in New England. With the slow-sailing ships of the day 
the expenses of shipping ordinary lumber to Europe 
were so great that profits were wiped out ; but masts and 
spars, which the New England pines were well adapted to make, 
were sent to Europe in large quantities. They were soon in use in 
most of the shipyards of western Europe. Another form in which 
the timber could be used was staves, much demanded in the 
West Indies for sugar casks. These islands were not well wooded 
and took lumber in many forms. Every colony had some share in 
their trade, but the New Englanders had the largest. 

The yellow pines in the region south of Virginia are rich in tar, 
which has many uses in shipbuilding. Tar, rosin, and tur- 
pentine have long been known as naval stores, because 

Tfflvfll stores 

they were in great demand for the sailing ships of the 
British navy. About the end of the seventeenth century they 
were produced in large quantities in the South. New England 
pines never yielded them successfully. 

The center of life in a New England town was the meeting- 
house. It was a plain building, poorly heated in winter, . 
but everybody went to the services. The sermons were 
long and serious. When the minister began preaching, a boy set 



80 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

an hour-glass on the desk. When the sands ran through, he would 
rise and turn the glass. Often the sermon lasted until the second 
glass ran through. If a wicked person died, the minister was apt 
in the sermon to cite his wickedness in order to warn others. The 
meetinghouse was the chief building in the town, and near it was 
the house of the pastor. New Englanders had great respect for 
their minister. He reproved wrongdoers and watched over the 
Influence of conduct of the people, old and young. Many a minis- 
the minister ter served in one town from early manhood to death. 
When the day for the election of officers came, the minister opened 
the ceremony with a sermon in which he hinted very plainly how 
good citizens should vote. His advice was usually taken, and it 
generally proved wise. The minister was the most learned man in 
the town. He usually knew something about medicine and treated 
the sick people in the small towns which had no physician. 

The early churches were called meetinghouses. They were 
generally rectangular, with the pulpit at one end and the door at 
Church the other. The congregation sat in such a way as to 

services show who were considered the most important people. 
The selectmen and the deacons sat in the front pews ; the latter 
frequently faced the congregation, with their backs to the high 
pulpit in which the minister towered above his hearers. Persons 
of ordinary rank sat in the middle of the building, and the humbler 
sort, with the boys and the servants, sat near the door. An 
officer with a long switch watched over the conduct of the serv- 
ants and boys, and, if one went to sleep, tapped him gently to 
bring him to attention. "The wretched boys," as they were often 
called, sometimes gave the officer much trouble. Their most 
common faults were sticking pins, pinching, and giggling. Cutting 
out of doors before the minister said "Amen" was another offense 
of the "wretched boys." We must remember that human nature 
was the same with Puritans as with others, and though all had to 
observe the rules prescribed for pious people, there were always 
some whose piety was only a form. 



LIFE IN THE EARLIEST COLONIES 81 

Religion in Virginia was administered according to the practices 
of the Church of England. There was a parish, a minister ordained 
by a bishop, and a vestry, that is, a board who man- Religion in 
aged the affairs of the church with the aid of the minis- Virginia 
ter. The congregation had nothing to say about their church 
government. The Prayer Book was in use, and the ceremonies 
of the churches were not as simple as in New England. The 
clergymen were often careless and lived for their own pleasures. 
Some of them were dissipated and given to horse-racing and 
cock-fighting. On the other hand, many Virginia clergymen were 
noted for piety. The planters were a gay group and were fond 
of fox-hunting, dancing, and merry entertainment. 

In their ideas of education the two sections were very different. 
In New England education was considered a necessity for all, and 
steps were taken from an early date to see that every 
child was taught how to read and write. The legis- 
lature of Massachusetts made it the duty of each town to tax 
itself for a public school. The smaller and newer towns fre- 
quently found a way to violate this law, but it was observed in the 
more prosperous and older towns, and after a century public edu- 
cation was general in the colony. In Virginia persons who could 
afford it educated their children, and some of the rich planters 
sent their sons to England for higher instruction. Now and again 
a charitable person would establish a school in which the poor 
children could be taught. It was a long time before the South 
came to realize that free public education to all is the only way to 
have a body of intelligent citizens. 

One of the first thoughts of the New Englanders was to have 
a college in which ministers would be taught. They expected 
the minister to have great influence over his parish, 
and to have it he must be a man of intelligence and 
learning. For this reason Massachusetts in 1636 established Har- 
vard College. It was named for Rev. John Harvard, who 
gave it his library and a sum of money. In 1701 some 

G 



82 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



gentlemen in Connecticut started another college, to which the 
name Yale was given in honor of Eli Yale, who donated a sum of 
money. These two colleges, Harvard and Yale, have had a wide 
influence in American education. What they did for New England 
was done for Virginia by William and INIary College, founded in 




Harvard College in 1726 

1693. When a new country is settled, it takes time to perform the 
hard work of clearing forests, establishing towns, and doing the 
other things which enable the people to live in comfort. Col- 
leges and universities usually belong to the period that comes after 
these first struggles. 

QUESTIONS 

I. Describe the most imperative needs of a new colony. What must 
it have in order to carry on trade ? What two centers of colony planting 
have we noted ? Of what sections are Virginia and Massachusetts typical ? 



LIFE IN THE EARLIEST COLONIES 83 

II. Was it foolish in the London Company to look for gold from 
Virginia? What class was needed more than gold hunters? Describe 
the hardships of the early settlers. Why were rivers important in the 
early colony? What made Indian corn a valuable product? What was 
the idea of the king about silk raising in Virginia ? Describe the be- 
ginning of tobacco raising. 

III. How did the small farms grow into plantations? Describe the 
origin of the planter class. What Enghsh form did the planters have in 
mind? Describe the tobacco trade. Why did Virginia have few 
towns? Describe the use of tobacco as money. How did the fall 
of Charles I affect the planter class in Virginia? How was the class 
renewed ? 

IV. Why did the planters feel the need of laborers? Who were in- 
dented servants? Describe kidnapping. How did Enghsh criminals 
come to be sent to the colonies? Who were redemptioners? What was 
the first experience with negro slaves? How did they at last come to be 
acceptable laborers ? Why did indented servants prove an unsatisfactory 
form of labor ? Describe the condition of slavery in the Northern colonies. 
What were two evil effects of slavery in America? 

V. Trace the progress of settlements in Virginia by rivers. Why was 
Virginia slow in building roads? What effect had cheap land prices? 
What is a staple crop? Give illustrations. Describe home manufac- 
tures in early Virginia. 

VI. Name some ways in which life in Virginia was hke that of Massa- 
chusetts. Name some points of difference. What was the difficulty about 
farming in Massachusetts? Name some other forms of industry than 
farming. 

VII. Describe the fur trade of New England. How was the coast 
trade carried on? What advantage has the cod over other fish? De- 
scribe the growth of cod fishing. Describe whale fishing by New Eng- 
landers. How were the whales taken? How did manufacturing in the 
seventeenth century differ from present-day methods? How did the 
New Englanders develop their skill in hand work? In what forms was 
timber most profitably exported? Describe the production of naval 
stores. 

VIII. Describe the early New England sermons. Describe the 
influence of the ministers. How were the people seated in the meeting- 
houses? How was order preserved? Compare reUgious Ufe in New 
England and Virginia. 

IX. How did Virginia and Massachusetts differ in regard to educa- 
tion? Describe the founding of Harvard College. Do the same for 



84 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

Yale College and William and Mary College. What was the object of 
education in New England? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

Suffering at Jamestown ; Plantation Life ; Life of the Servants ; The 
Introduction of Slavery and Its Consequences ; The Life of a Fur Trader ; 
The Adventures of the Whalers ; Early History of Harvard College. 



CHAPTER VII 
THE LATER GROUP OF COLONIES 

The year 1660 is an important date in British history because 
in that year Charles II came to the throne after his family had 
been excluded for eleven years by the great Puritan 
leader, Oliver Cromwell. Charles was a good-natured 
ruler, and his chief desire was to remain on his throne and 
have enough money for his pleasures. He allowed the Ameri- 
can colonies to do about as they pleased. He did not propose 
to spend money on them, but he was quite willing that his sub- 
jects should spend it in that way. All the colonies established 
during his reign were set on foot by individuals who thought they 
would make money out of their ventures. When he came to the 
throne, New England, Virginia, and Maryland had been settled. 
When he died in 1685, New York had been taken from the Dutch 
and made an English colony, and North and South Carolina, 
New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware had been founded. We 
shall now have to learn how each of these colonies began its exist- 
ence. 

Henry Hudson in a Dutch ship discovered the Hudson River in 
1609, and a few years later some merchants of Holland built a fort 
on Manhattan Island and began to trade with the Arrival of 
Indians. The fort proved an excellent trading station. ^^ i^"tch 
Small sailing vessels could go from it up the river to Albany, where 
they built a trading fort, one hundred and fifty miles in the interior 
of the fur-producing country. Eastward they traded along the 
shores of Long Island Sound and up the Connecticut, erecting a 
fort where Hartford now stands. A trading fort had a small 

85 



86 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



garrison for protection, but its most important contents were the 
trading goods. These consisted of knives, hatchets, guns, ammuni- 
tion, beads, blankets, and rum, all of which the Indians took eagerly 
in exchange for skins. The savages were glad to obtain European 




New Amsterdam in 1656 



merchandise, but the rum they got from the whites was the source 
of much trouble. 

The Dutch were pleased with the fine harbor of New York, 
the trading fort became a town, and the Avhole region a colony. 
The town was known as New Amsterdam, 1626, and 
the colony as New Netherland. Farmers now ap- 
peared and settled along the shores of the harbor. To get others 
to come large tracts were offered to wealthy Dutchmen who, it 
was thought, would bring tenants with them. These great 



THE LATER GROUP OF COLONIES 



landowners were called patroons, and they had handsome estates 
along the Hudson. Some of the patroons became the founders 
of very influential New York families. A patroon lived in a large 
house, and throughout the estate were scattered the cottages of his 
tenants. He had his own mill at which the tenants must have their 
wheat and corn ground. He took rent year by year from the 
holders of the small farms 
and in many ways forced 
them to do as he pleased. 
The system was unpopular, 
but it lasted until after 
the revolution. 

The Dutch were sober 
and industrious, but they 
were not eager AnEngUsh 
to govern them- P^^y 
selves. The government 
given them by the authori- 
ties in Holland was very 
simple. A governor was 
sent over whose power was 
nearly absolute. New Am- 
sterdam was so good a harbor that traders from England and 
New England also settled there among the Dutch. One of the 
results was much quarreling; for the English were used to self- 
government, and they were not satisfied with the rule of the 
Dutch governors. Thus there grew up an English party which 
hoped that the colony would one day become English. In fact, 
the kings of England claimed all the coast from Florida to Maine 
and looked on the Dutch as intruders. They based their claim 
on the voyages of John Cabot, 1497-1498. Meanwhile, men from 
New England crossed Long Island Sound and settled at will 
on Long Island. This land was a part of New Netherland, but 
the Dutch were unable to drive off the settlers or to rule them. 




EARLY SETTLEMENTS 
NEAR 

NEW YORK 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



The New Englanders were finally allowed to govern themselves in 
towns, and they paid little attention to orders from Manhattan 
Island. 

In 1664 England was about to begin war on Holland, and it 
seemed a good time to assert her claim to New Netherland. First, 
Conquered King Charles gave the country to his brother, the Duke 
by the of York. Then the duke sent out three ships of war, 

English which anchored before New Amsterdam. A demand 
for surrender was sent to the Dutch governor, Peter Stuyvesant. 
He was a cross-tempered but brave old man who had done many 
cruel things in his seventeen years of rule. He declared stoutly 
that he would never surrender the post committed to him, but the 
people under him were tired of Dutch governors. The men on 




West India warehouses, New York harbor, 1673 



THE LATER GROUP OF COLONIES 89 

Long Island made active preparations to aid the fleet, and oven 
the Dutch farmers around New Amsterdam let it be known that 
they thought the colony should be given up. When the English 
commander heard of this, he sent a letter offering to give all the 
inhabitants the liberties of Englishmen. Stuyvesant would not 
let his people read the letter, and when they asked to see it, he tore 
it into bits, saying he would be carried out dead before he would 
surrender. But he submitted just as the ships were about to open 
fire. The town and colony were now called New York in honor 
of their new owner. The change of rule pleased the inhabitants, 
but it was over twentj^ years before thej^ got what they had been 
promised, the liberties of Englishmen. 

Along with the Dutch colony the duke acquired a large territory 
south of New York ; for the Dutch had exercised authority in this 
region also. In 1638 the Swedes founded a town, Chris- Delaware 
tina, near what is now Wilmington, Delaware. It was a sold to Penn 
weak settlement, and the Dutch seized it in 1655, claiming that it. 
was within the l^ounds of New Netherland. In 1664 it passed into 
English hands when the Dutch colony was seized. The Duke of 
York did not keep it long. In 1681 he sold it to Wilham Perm, who 
allowed the region along the lower Delaware to be a separate colony 
called Delaware. 

The duke sold a still larger region, that which lay between the 
Hudson and the Delaware, to two of his friends, Lord Berkeley 
and Sir George Carteret. To this grant the name 
New Jersey was given. After a while the two proprie- 
tors divided their colony into East and West Jersey, and later 
they themselves sold their rights to various other persons. "The 
Jerseys," as this section of the coast was called for some time, 
were finally reunited into the colony of New Jersey. The inhabit- 
ants were of several kinds, Quakers, New England men, and 
many small farmers from the other colonies and from England. 
They were very democratic people, and in colonial times their 
chief occupation was farming. 



90 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

When King Charles gave New York to his brother, he intended 
to reward him for the loss of much property during the period the 
Puritans ruled England. There were several others 
among his chief nobles for whom he had the same feel- 
ing, and in 1663 he rewarded eight of them by granting them an 
immense tract of land south of Virginia, calling it Carolina. It 
embraced what is now North Carolina, South Carolina, and Ten- 
nessee, and three-fourths of Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi. 
The eight noblemen were called lords proprietors, and they were 
authorized to found as many colonies as they chose. They began 
by establishing one on Albemarle Sound, 1664, where a few men 
from Virginia had already settled, and another, Charleston, 1670, 
at a place where the Ashlej'' and Cooper rivers unite and make an 
excellent harbor. 

At first the proprietors expected that other colonies would be 
planted ; for it was thought that a colony would be small. They 
Two were disappointed. For many years the people who 

colonies went to Carolina settled on the Ashley and Cooper 
rivers or near Albemarle Sound, and a broad space between 
these places was left unsettled. Thus at last Carolina became 
divided into two large colonies, — North Carolina and South Caro- 
lina. After a while the intervening region was settled. 

The proprietors were bad fathers of colonies. They did not 
visit America, nor spend their money on the settlements. When 
The failure they realized that no profit was to be made out of Caro- 
of the lina, they began to sell their shares. Merchants took 

propnetors ^j^gij. places and sought to make money by sending their 
wares to the two colonies. But this plan proved a failure, since 
the colonists continued to trade where they chose. There was 
much confusion in each colony for a time ; but as the country 
advanced the leading men took things into their own hands 
and established order. Finally the South Carolinians began to 
produce rice in large quantities. It was in great demand in Europe, 
and the planters became very wealthy. In 1719 South Carolina 



THE LATER GROUP OF COLONIES 91 

revolted against the governor sent them by the proprietors and 
asked the king to take the colony into his own hands. The result 
was that in 1729 the king took over the two CaroUnas, and after 
that they were royal provinces. 

South Carolina had good harbors, and the harbors of North 
Carolina were poor, with the exception of Wilmington, which 
was in the extreme southeastern corner of the colony. The two 
To trade with the southern colony was easy, with the colonies 
northern colony it was difficult. The North Carolinians compared 
had no large money crop, like rice, and contented themselves with 
raising tobacco, hogs, and corn in small quantities. After Wil- 
mington was settled about 1725 rice was also raised. The result 
was that the North Carolina people were generally small farmers, 
while there were in South Caro- 
lina many wealthy planters 
with great groups of slaves. 
Charleston was a seat of fash- 
ion and luxury, and handsome 
houses were found on the 
plantations. After cotton be- 
gan to be raised in the South, 



North Carolina prospered more 

freely, slaves became more 

numerous, and large planters 

appeared throughout the part 

of the state in which cotton is ^^^^^^^^HIItaEk ' ZF 

grown. 

Seventeen years after Caro- 
lina was granted to the eight 

. , -r^. ^^, , T_ William Penn 

proprietors, Kmg Charles II 

granted Pennsylvania to William Penn, 1680. The man who thus 
became the proprietor of the new colony was noted Penn and 
for his justice and good sense. He was a Quaker and i"s colony 
induced many Quakers to go to Pennsylvania. He met the 




92 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

Indians and purchased from them the lands along the Delaware. 
His colony was not troubled by Indian wars until many years 
after he was dead. He wished the settlers to be governed wisely, 
and gave them permission to make their own form of govern- 
ment. They elected an assembly which prepared what was known 
as "The. Great Charter," a liberal form of government in which 
the people were allowed to choose their lawmakers. The gov- 
ernors were appointed by Penn and by his family after his death. 

Penn arrived in his colony in 1682. He was received with 
great respect by those who had come over before him. One of the 
first things he did was to lay out the city of Philadel- 
phia where the Delaware and Schuylkill rivers meet. 
He insisted that the streets should be broad and straight and that 
the house lots should be large enough to allow gardens. He said 
that he wished the place to be a green country town. It was 
noted for its regular streets and its generally attractive appearance. 
Philadelphia grew rapidly, and its trade expanded as settlers 
came into the colony. The soil of Pennsylvania Avas fertile and 
the climate more favorable to farming than the climate in New 
England. In a short time Philadelphia was the leading city in 
the colonies. 

Penn was one of the most influential Quakers in England, and 
his colony attracted attention among his fellow Quakers. They 
TheGer- were glad to escape persecution at home and at the 
™aiis same time found estates for themselves in a new world. 

But Penn wisely offered toleration to all churches, and many 
people came to Pennsylvania who were not Quakers. Among 
them were Germans, who first settled Germantown, near Phila- 
delphia, and later were distributed throughout the farming com- 
munities of eastern Pennsylvania. They were a thrifty and hard- 
working body of men, and they have done much to make the 
state what it is. 

Another important part of the population was Scotch-Irish. 
These people first lived in Scotland, and were Presbyterians. They 



J 



THE LATER GROUP OP COLONIES 93 

were settled in northern Ireland about the time Virginia became a 
colony in the hope that they might succeed in making Ireland a 
country of Protestants. At the end of a hundred The Scotch- 
yeaite the Irish had not forsaken Catholicism, and the l"sh 
Scotch-Irish — called such because they were Scots who had lived 
in Ireland — were generally poor and oppressed by the landlords. 
When Penn's agents came among them offering land, a great many 
decided to accept the offer. They liked the colony and sent back 
to Ireland such a good report that a steady stream of immigra- 
tion was started which lasted until the revolution. 

The Scotch-Irish settled at first in the southern part of central 
Pennsylvania. Then they moved southward across the narrow 
part of Maryland into Virginia. About 1750 they be- in other 
gan to fill up the western counties of the Carolinas. colonies 
Later on, they crossed the mountains and made an important part 
of the people who settled Kentucky, Tennessee, and Ohio. Their 
experience in Ireland taught them to endure hardships, and they 
were well fitted to meet the dangers in the forests of America. 
They were very successful frontiersmen. Many men who later 
became distinguished in public life were of Scotch-Irish origin. We 
must remember that the Scotch-Irish were not Highlanders, nor 
were they Irishmen. They were Lowland Scots, whose century 
of residence in Ireland did not change their religion nor their ideas. 

When Penn arrived in America, 1682, he seems to have intended 
to spend the rest of his days in his colony ; but he was called 
home two years later to settle a dispute which had Boundary 
arisen between him and Lord Baltimore in regard to dispute 
the boundary between Maryland and Pennsylvania. Each man 
stood out for his side, and no settlement was reached until both 
men were dead. It was not until 1760 that an agreement was 
made on the basis of the present line between the two states. This 
line was run in 1767 by Mason and Dixon, two surveyors. Thus 
we have the l)oundary kno^vn as Mason and Dixon's line, long 
important because it separated the free from the slave states. 



94 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

In 1699 Penn made a second visit to his colony. He found the 

people prosperous but dissatisfied with their government. He 

stayed two years among them, trying to quiet them. 
Government ,■,■,■, i i • • i 

At last they drew up under his oversight a new lorm of 

government, which suited the conditions of the colony better 
than that which was prepared in 1G83. Each county was now to 
have four representatives in the assembly, and there was to be a 
governor and council appointed by the proprietor ; that is, by 
Penn himself. When this settlement was made, Penn sailed for 
England, where much trouble awaited him. He was unjustly 
sued for debt and went to prison rather than submit. In con- 
Penn and finement his health was injured, and he was never again 
his sons a well man. He died in 1718, and Pennsylvania be- 
came the property of his sons. They continued to appoint the 
governors, but the assembly was elected by the freemen. Penn 
himself did not make money out of the colony, but it became a 
valual:)le estate to his heirs. All the land not sold to the settlers 
remained in the hands of the Penns. In time the value of land 
rose as the country became peopled. Vast tracts remained in the 
possession of the proprietors, who would not let it be taxed as other 
land was taxed. This provoked a long quarrel between people 
and proprietors. 

When the colony of Pennsylvania was settled, all the Atlantic 
coast in the hands of Great Britain had been erected into colonies. 
Two They were New Hampshire, Massachusetts (including 

changes Maine), Plymouth, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New 
York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, 
North Carolina, and South Carolina. Two changes were to be 
made in this list which we must now consider. 

In 1684 the charter of Massachusetts was recalled by the courts 
in a manner somewhat like that by which the London Company 
I. Plymouth Was destroyed in 1624. Massachusetts now became 
absorbed a royal province. This means that it was to be gov- 
erned by the king, who would send a governor, and appoint a 



THE LATER GROUP OF COLONIES 95 

council to aid the governor. The king was now James II, and he 
had made up his mind to combine the New England colonies and 
New York and New Jersey in one great Dominion, in which there 
should be no assemblies chosen by the people. He expected that 
the laws for the Dominion should be made by the council, which 
would do as he wished. The future seemed dark for the people, 
who loved their liberties, when in 1688 there was a revolution in 
England by which the king himself was driven away and William 
and Mary were recognized as the sovereigns of the ^g^ charter 
country. They undid what had been done in New forMassa- 
England, and gave Massachusetts a new charter. But <^^"s®"s 
it was not like that which Charles had taken away. It allowed 
the colony to have an assembly elected by its inhabitants, the 
assembly to make the laws. The governor was not to be elected 
by the colony, as under the old charter, but appointed by the 
king. Massachusetts thus was a royal province until the revolu- 
tion. Another feature of the new charter was that Plymouth was 
made a part of Massachusetts. In this way one of the old colonies 
disappeared. 

About forty years later another colony was founded, cut out of 
the territory of South Carolina. This came about through the 
efforts of General James Oglethorpe, a benevolent 2. Georgia 
Englishman, who sought to help the people whom he founded 
found in the Enghsh debtors' prisons. Many of these prisoners 
were unfortunate persons who had done nothing worse than get 
into debt. By the law they could not be liberated until their 
debts were paid. Oglethorpe and some others formed a company 
to send them to America, where they might have land and begin 
life anew. This was in 1732, and the colony he founded was named 
Georgia, after the king, George II. The first settlement was made 
in 1733 at Savannah. Oglethorpe spent much of his time and 
money in behalf of the colony. The debtors proved poor material 
out of which to build a colony, and soon they ceased to be sent 
to Georgia. But various other kinds of men came. Some of them 



96 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 




THE LATER GROUP OF COLONIES 97 

were Germans and some were men from the colonies north of the 
Savannah. The land of Georgia was fertile, but the settlement 
grew slowly. The area through which settlers in America were 
now scattering was so large that the people who wished to leave 
England, Scotland, and Ireland were not numerous enough to fill 
it up rapidly. As Georgia was the newest and most distant of the 
colonies, it got a small part of those who came over. 

In 1751 the Georgia Company gave up its charter, and the 
colony became a royal province. At this time all the colonies 
except Rhode Island, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Dela- Three kinds 
ware, and Maryland were in this class. Of these five °^ colonies 
exceptions the first and second were corporation colonies, the 
others were proprietary colonies. A corporation colony had its 
government in its own hands, and chose its own governor as well 
as its own assembly. In a proprietary colony the governor was 
appointed by the proprietor. In every colony there was some 
kind of elected assembly which made the laws. 

Each colony had a history of its own, but it would take much 
space to describe them all. The thing the reader of this book must 
remember is that the colonies were settled one after another along 
the coast, each in a particular way. After they were settled they 
all began to grow in a common way. Farming, trading, clearing 
away the forests, fishing, and lumbering were nearly the same 
wherever followed. The first settlers lived along the coast, their 
sons moved a little further inland. Down the rivers came the 
produce of the interior. It was sold to the merchants on the 
coast who had imported merchandise to give in exchange for it. 
Where the merchants were, towns grew up. In Virginia, as we 
have seen, the planters sold directly to England, and towns did 
not grow up there until about the end of the colonial period. 
But Virginia grew rapidly in population and was the largest, 
as it was the oldest, of the colonies. In the next chapter we 
shall consider some of the things which tended to draw the 
colonies together. 



98 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

QltESTIONS 

I. What is the importance of the year 16G0 in British history ? What 
colonies had England at this time? How did Charles II feel about the 
colonies? What colonies were established while he was king? 

II. What valuable discovery did Henry Hudson make? Describe 
the establishment of the Dutch trading fort. What was a trading fort 
like? What was the effect of rum on the Indians? Give the names of 
the Dutch town and colony. Describe the patroons and their estates. 
Describe the Dutch government in New Netherland. How did the 
English party grow up there? What did it demand ? On what did Eng- 
land base her claim to the colony? Describe the conquest by England. 
What promise was given to the people? 

III. Describe the early history of Delaware. What nation settled it? 
Through what hands did New Jersey pass ? Why was it sometimes called 
"the Jerseys"? Describe the people. 

IV. Why did the king grant the CaroUna tract? How was it done? 
What was its extent? What authority was given to the proprietors? 
What kind of colonies did they propose to have? What two were suc- 
cessfully established? How did they grow? Why did the proprietors 
prove bad colony founders ? What was the result of rice planting in South 
Carolina? Describe the revolt in South Carolina. How did the two col- 
onies become royal provinces? Compare North and South Carolina. 

V. Describe the grant of Pennsylvania. What kind of motives had 
Penn? What form of government did he give his colony? Describe 
the beginning of Philadelphia. Describe the growth of Pennsylvania. 
What was the policy toward various churches? Describe the arrival of 
the Germans. Who were the Scotch-Irish? Describe the removal to 
Pennsylvania. How did they expand to other colonies? Why were they 
good frontiersmen? Explain the Maryland-Pennsylvania boundary dis- 
pute. Why was Mason and Dixon's line important? What important 
settlement was made during Penn's second visit to his colony? Describe 
the new form of government. How did Penn spend his later years? 
How was Pennsylvania ruled after his death ? 

VI. What colonies existed in North America when Charles II died? 
What two changes in them were about to be made ? 

VII. How did Massachusetts lose her charter? What kind of govern- 
ment replaced it ? What plan did the king make for the northern colonies ? 
How did the revolution in England affect this plan? Describe the new 
charter of Massachusetts. 

VIII. Describe Oglethorpe's efforts in behalf of the debtor prisoners. 



THE LATER GROUP OF COLONIES 99 

Describe the early years of Georgia history. Why did the colony grow 
slowly ? 

IX. Describe the three kinds of colonies. In what respects did all 
tend to grow in the same way ? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

A Sketch of the Rule of Peter Stuyvesant ; Henry Hudson's Voyage ; 
The Services of Wilham Penn to Pennsylvania ; The Government of a 
Royal Province ; Oglethorpe's Career in Georgia ; The Leisler Revolution 
in New York. 



CHAPTER VIII 
THE EARLIEST SIGNS OF UNION AMONG THE COLONIES 

The people of England believed that colonies were but children 
of a mother country, who had founded and nourished them when 
Mother and they could not protect themselves. In return for this, 
children [^ ^as generally held, the colonies ought to respect 
and help the mother country. They ought to send her their 
products and buy from her their manufactured goods. In other 
words, colonies existed for the benefit of the country on which 
they depended. 

The people in America did not agree with this idea. They knew 
that the king and parliament of England had done very little 
What the ^OT them. The colonists came across the ocean at 
colonists their own expense, they made new homes for them- 
thought selves with little help from the British government, 

and they fought off the Indians through their own strength and 
sacrifice. They also felt that they were as truly Englishmen as 
those who lived in the old home, and as Englishmen they claimed 
the right of self-government. For this reason they resented the 
idea that they should be more bound to obey the king than the peo- 
ple of England. If Englishmen might trade where they pleased, 
why should not the colonists do the same? 

The king paid no attention to the wishes of the colonies. He 
knew they were too weak to resist him singly, and he did not 
Could they think they could ever unite. In this he was mistaken. 
"^*6 ' In trying to carry out his ideas that colonies exist for the 

benefit of the mother country, he made regulations which were 
resented by all the colonies alike. One and all, therefore, they 

100 



EARLIEST SIGNS OF UNION AMONG THE COLONIES 101 

began to see that the cause of one was that of the others. While 
they were weak they could not resist, but as they became older 
and stronger they began to think of means by which they could 
keep England from using them for her own good. In doing so 
they came to act together. If one were asked what was the first 
thing that brought the colonies together in a union, he must 
answer : It was the unwise action of England herself in seeking to 
make the colonies a means of enriching her own people. 

This policy first appeared in 1651, in the time of Cromwell. It 
was expressed in what are known as the navigation acts, or the 
laws of trade. They were a series of laws passed by Thenavi- 
parhament to force the colonists to deal with British gationacts 
merchants only and to ship their goods in British ships alone. 
They were passed to please the British merchants and shipowners, 
and whenever there was suggestion of repealing them, loud protests 
came from these favored classes. No ship but a British ship could 
take tobacco from Virginia to Europe, and even such a ship must ' 
take it to a British port or pay a heavy tax before sailing. Manu- 
factured goods, with a few exceptions, must be imported from 
British ports. In this way the British merchants, who bought 
colonial produce, those who sold merchandise to the colonies, the 
owners of British ships, and the king, who collected revenues, prof- 
ited at the expense of the colonists. If the people of the colonies 
could have traded as they chose, they could have sold some of their 
products at better prices, they could have bought merchandise 
more cheaply, the Dutch ships would have carried their goods 
for lower rates, and they would not have had to pay the high taxes 
in British ports. Of course, colony sliips were British ships. 

An illustration of how the British government treated the 
colonies in regard to trade is seen in the "molasses act" as 
it was called (1733). Great Britain owned some sugar- The " mo- 
producing islands in the West Indies, and France and lasses act " 
Holland owned some also. From all of them the New Englanders 
got molasses out of which they made rum. After a while the 



102 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

English islanders asked that the molasses of the French and Dutch 
islands be taxed so high in American ports that the rum-makers 
would not import it. They thought that this would force the New 
Englanders to buy from them at higher prices. The British 
parliament did all that was asked by the islanders, and the result 
was the "molasses act." Now appeared a difficulty. The Eng- 
lish islands did not raise as much molasses as was used by the rum- 
makers, so that some of the New England distilleries must close 
if the law was enforced. This was so evident that the British 
officers did not pretend to enforce the act for many years after it 
was passed. But the act made a bad impression in New England. 
While the navigation acts were keenly felt by the colonists, 
there were two reasons why they did not utterly crush the trade 
of the Americans. 1. They applied to only a portion 

Two reasons ^ i r- ^ i- 

of the products that were exported. It was only to- 
bacco, rice, molasses, copper, and furs that were to be sent ex- 
clusively to British ports. There were many other products that 
might be sent to any place the shipper selected. Among them were 
fish, pork, beef, and wheat, all articles Avhich the colonists were 
in the habit of selling at good profit to the West Indies. 

2. The British officials in the colonies allowed the laws to be 
violated. Of course, this was smuggling, and it would not be 
tolerated by honorable men in our owti day. The colonists did 
not think it wrong to break a law thej^ considered unjust. One 
way of breaking the law was to unload ships in unwatched harbors. 
Sometimes the officers were not careful and allowed a ship loaded 
with sugar or molasses to pass through their hands as though it 
were loaded with something else. When at last the British govern- 
ment tried to enforce the navigation acts strictly, there was a 
great outcry from the colonies. The trading colonies 
were most damaged by these acts and felt most indig- 
nant on account of them. They were Pennsylvania, New York, 
Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Rhode Island. 

As the colonies grew in power they had less fear of England. 



EARLIEST SIGNS OF UNION AMONG THE COLONIES 103 

They were much larger than the mother country and would some 
day have a larger population. Every settler looked to the future 
with confidence. Some time, it was thought, they Looking to 
would have manufactures and be able to get along *^^ future 
without importing all their merchandise from Europe. They even 
began to make hats, ironware, and many other things. They were 
surprised to learn that all this was not to be allowed. The British 
manufacturers complained that they would be ruined if the colonial 
manufactures were not restrained. They got what they wished, 
and parliament ordered the colonies to cease exporting woolen 
cloth, hats, and ironware which they had manufactured. This was 
a blow to the infant manufactures, and it created much indignation 
in America. 

The feelings of the Americans were best expressed in the colonial 
assemblies. To understand this statement we must remember 
that each colonial assembly looked on itself as a guar- Manufac- 
dian of the interests of the colony in which it existed, turesre- • 
It was composed of delegates chosen by the people. ^*"*^*®^ 
Now the colonists looked on the colonial assembly xheas- 
as similar to the British parliament. One of the rights sembiy 
of the parliament was to levy the taxes and to decide how the 
money that came from them should be spent. A colonial as- 
sembly came to the conclusion that it alone could tax the people 
of the colony and that it alone could decide what should be done 
with the money that was paid for taxes. Very aggravating dis- 
putes grew up out of this conviction. 

One was about the payment of the salary of the governor. 
In some of the colonies the king got the assembly to levy a special 
tax which was collected year by year, and it was possible xhe gover- 
to pay the governor's salary out of this. In such nor's salary 
a colony no quarrel over salary occurred. But most colonies 
approved the governor's salary annually. In the proprietary 
colonies the governor was appointed by the proprietor and the 
salary was paid by him out of the funds he received either from land 



104 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

sales or from the quit-rent, which was a small sum paid by every 
landowner. In these colonies there was no quarrel over the 
governor's salary. Where a governor was elected by the as- 
sembly, as in Connecticut and Rhode Island, the assembly paid 
the salary from the money raised through taxation. Here, also, 
there was no quarrel. 

But in other colonies, as in Massachusetts and New York, the 
king mshed to force the legislature to vote a tax from which the 
inMassa- governor's salary could be paid. Both colonies re- 
chusetts fused to do what was demanded. The king held out 
stubbornly, and the assembly would pay nothing for more than one 
year. The people felt that if they could have it understood 
that the governor's salary depended on them, they could force him 
to favor the interest of the colony. The quarrel was long and bitter 
in Massachusetts, but in the end the king had to give way. While 
this controversy was going on the people learned how to stand 
up for their side against the king. Other colonies watched 
the quarrel with keen interest, and everywhere there grew up 
the feeling that assemblies had a right to demand what they 
thought their rights. You will see how important this was 
when the colonies came to resist England in the outbreak of 
the revolution. Every small struggle that one colony had 
against the mother country only served to make it more willing 
to unite with the others in the great struggle which all felt was 
to come. 

A very good illustration of how ready a colony was to act for 
itself is seen in the way in which the oldest colony resisted its 
Virginia's governor in what was known as Bacon's rebellion. Vir- 
eariy loyalty ginia was at one time a most loyal and obedient colony. 
Her governor was Sir William Berkeley, who loved the king, 
Charles I, and did all he could to keep the colony true to him. 
When the king's head was cut off by the Puritans under Cromwell, 
1649, Berkeley was dismissed ; but he was again made governor 
when Charles II was received as king of England in 1660. Vir- 



EARLIEST SIGNS OF UNION AMONG THE COLONIES 105 

ginia was delighted with the restoration, and Berkeley was allowed 
to do about as he chose. 

He took advantage of the loyalty of the people to keep in 
office for fourteen years an assembly that was willing to do what he 
wished. In colonial times a Virginia assembly was sent Berkeley's 
home and another elected only as the governor ordered, tyranny 
Berkeley had his own friends in the assembly and felt very inde- 
pendent. One thing he did was to give to persons who were 
friendly to him valuable licenses to trade with the Indians north 
of Virginia. About this time the Indians in that region, alarmed 
at the advance of the white settlements, had begun to attack the 
families on the frontier. Sometimes they carried off cattle, and 
sometimes they killed the settlers. The colonists were alarmed 
and thought that a strong force ought to be sent to punish the 
Indians before they attempted open war. But the governor would 
not let the people march against the savages, and it was said that 
he did this because he thought that a war would interfere with the' 
profits of his friends, the traders. 

This produced great anger among the people, some of whom 
had plantations on the frontier. At last they found a leader in 
Nathaniel Bacon, a 3'Oung man of great boldness and Nathaniel 
eloquence. He made a speech in which he said he Bacon 
would lead the people to punish the Indians, governor or no gover- 
nor. Three hundred men came to his aid with guns in their hands. 
They set their faces northward, but had not gone far when Berkeley 
issued a proclamation declaring they were rebels for going out 
without his permission. This discouraged some and they went 
home. The others went on and encountered the foe in a severe 
battle in which one hundred and fifty Indians were slain. Gov- 
ernor Berkeley was in a rage. He had ruled the colony in his own 
way so long that he feared that if an army once was organized, 
it would turn against him. 

His fears proved well founded. Bacon and his followers came 
back from the Indian country determined to resist the governor. 



106 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

The people were witli them, and Berkeley yielded. An assembly 
was elected and met to make laws. They seem to have feared 
Berkeley's that the governor would not keep their laws ; for a 
fears demand Avas made that Bacon should continue in 

command of the army. This made Berkeley very angry; for he 
saw that it was intended that the army should be a threat held 
over his head. The quarrel now became violent ; some men sup- 
ported Bacon and some the governor. 

Each side took up arms, and civil war was the result. Berke- 
ley was in Jamestown with six hundred men, and Bacon attacked 
Jamestown the place, intending to starve it into submission. He 
taken placed his men across the neck of land that connected 

the peninsula with the mainland and made every effort to throw 
up breastworks before he could be driven off by the artillery of the 
other side. It is said that to gain time he sent carriages during 
the night to the plantations of his enemies and secured many of 
the leading women of the neighborhood. He assured them they 
should suffer no harm from his own men. At dawn they were 
stationed in front of the earthworks on which his men were hard at 
work, between Bacon's army and that of the governor. When the 
defenders of the town saw their wives and sisters protecting the 
lines that confronted them, they dared not fire ; and so Bacon 
finished his defenses and took Jamestown. The place had been 
true to the governor and now it was not spared. Bacon reduced it 
to a heap of smoking ruins, and then turned to give his enemy a 
deathblow. But his race Avas run. Exposed in the swamps, 
he was seized by disease and died a few weeks after he won his 
triumph at Jamestown. 

Governor Berkeley now came back to his capital and the war 
went on. His opponents had no head and submitted or fled. The 
Berkeley's leaders were hunted down, and thirteen were hanged, 
vengeance Qne of them was Drummond, who had once been gover- 
nor of North Carolina. He was much hated by the angry old gover- 
nor. When he was taken, Berkeley said to him : "Mr. Drummond, 



EARLIEST SIGNS OF UNION AMONG THE COLONIES 107 

you are welcome. I am more glad to see you than any man in 
Virginia. Mr. Drummond, you shall be hanged in half an hour." 
"As your honor pleases," said the prisoner, as he was led to the 
scaffold. 

This display of wrath turned his own friends against the gov- 
ernor. Those who had fought for him could not fail to see that 
he was no longer fit to be governor. The king himself Fall of 
was disappointed and recalled him to England. The Berkeley 
old man left the colony with the idea that he would come back 




The house in which Nathaniel Bacon died 
From an original sketch. 



vindicated. In London he found that the king would not see him, 
and broken in spirit he died a few weeks later. He repre- 
sented an old type of aristocrat, which was then disappearing in 
England and was not likely to gain a foothold in a new country 
where each man must work hard for himself. 



108 THE PLAIN STORY OP AMERICAN HISTORY 

He did not like to see poor men become influential in government, 
and he thought the great planters should have the control in Vir- 
Berkeley ginia. He did not approve of schools for all the people 
and Bacon and said, "Learning has brought disobedience and 
compared heresy and sects into the world and printing has di- 
vulged [them]." Bacon was another kind of man. He believed 
that the Virginians should have the same interest in making their 
laws through their assembly as the Englishmen had in making 
English laws in parliament. After the departure of Berkeley the 
assembly was allowed greater power, and it gradually became the 
instrument of expressing the will of the people. Bacon's course 
undoubtedly was largei^ responsilile for this change. 

Bacon's rebellion was long remembered in other colonies. It 
occurred in the oldest, largest, and most loyal of the king's 
What Bacon American colonies, and it showed what could be done 
stands for when the assembly was not given the right to make 
laws in obedience to the will of the people. Nathaniel Bacon's 
death was not in vain. He was the first man to fight against the 
claim of England to rule a colony as she chose. He risked his life 
to prove that the right of government rests with the people who 
are governed. Washington, Adams, Franklin, Jefferson, and a' 
great many other men did the same thing just a hundred j^ears 
later. When Bacon fought Governor Berkeley, only one colony 
was involved. When Washington fought King George lU, thir- 
teen colonies stood side by side fighting for independence. 

QUESTIONS 

I. What was the English view of the duty of a colony? What did 
the colonists think of it? What was their idea of their own future? 
How did the attitude of the king tend to draw the colonies together? 
Show how England was responsible for the first steps of the colonies toward 
colonial union. 

II. When did the navigation acts fli'st appear? What did they pro- 
vide? Why were they adopted? What was the "molasses act"? 
Why did the navigation acts fail to crush the trade of the colonies ? What 



EARLIEST SIGNS OF UNION AMONG THE COLONIES 109 

trade was left open? Which were the trading colonies? In what way 
did England restrain colonial manufactures? 

III. How did the colonial assembly come to speak for the colonial side? 
In what way did it resemble the English parUament? Describe the con- 
troversy over the payment of the governor's salary. Why did the Massa- 
chusetts assembly wish to pass on the salary itself? 

IV. Describe Sir William Berkeley's career as governor. How did 
he abuse his power? Why would he not punish the Indians? Describe 
Bacon's action in regard to the Indians. What effect did this have on the 
governor? How did the assembly take precaution against Berkeley's 
future conduct? Describe the attack on Jamestown. Describe Bacon's 
ruse. How did he punish the town? How did his work fail? Describe 
Berkeley's vengeance. Describe the overthrow of Berkeley's influence in 
Virginia. What was the influence of Bacon's rp .^llion on other colonies? 



SUGGESTED TOPICS 

Smuggling in the Colonies; The Operation of the "Molasses Act"; 
The Massachusetts Controversy over the Governor's Salary ; Lord Corn- 
bury as Governor ; The Career of Nathaniel Bacon ; His Attack on James- 
town. 



CHAPTER IX 
THE WARS AGAINST THE INDIANS AND THE FRENCH 

In the preceding chapter we have seen that the colonies began 
to think of acting together when England began to place burdens 
Recapitula- on their commerce and manufactures. We have also 
tioii seen that the colonial assembly became a strong power 

in the colony. It was considered a kind of parliament which 
protected the people against the king in the same way that the 
British parliament protected the liberty of the people of Great 
Britain. We have seen, also, that the Virginians took up arms to 
show that they had the right to elect their assembly at frequent 
intervals in order that it might act as a restraint on a despotic 
governor. We must now take up those wars in which the colonists 
were called upon to act together against the Indians, and after 
a while against the French. They were very important because : 
Why the (1) They cleared the ground of Indians and French 
wars were and finally left all the country for the English colonies ; 
important ^^^^ ^2) they taught the colonies how to support one 
another in war and made them believe that they could fight as 
well as the British regulars Avho fought at their sides. 

The first of these wars was fought in New England and was 
known as King Philip's war, 1675-1676. Philip was the son of 
King Massasoit, the Wampanoag, friend of the people of 

Philip's Plymouth. He was alarmed at the progress of the 

^^"^ settlers and came to see that the Indians must fight 

or lose their lands. Many other Indians felt as he felt, and the 
war which goes by his name was supported by several tribes, ex- 
tending from the Connecticut valley to the coast of Maine. In 

110 



WARS AGAINST THE INDIANS AND THE FRENCH HI 



June, 1675, the town of Swansea, Plymouth Colony, was suddenly 
attacked by the Indians. One by one other towns reported that 
they were beset. How much Philip had to do with these various 




Philip's part 



outbreaks is not known. The people of New England thought for 

a long time that he was the chief person in stirring up 

war ; but historians of our own day are inclined to 

think that he had little to do with any battles except those in 

which his own people, the Wampanoags, took part. 

The attacks came from such a large number of tribes that the 
whites suspected every branch of the Indian race in New England. 
News came that the Narragansetts, who had befriended Narragan- 
Roger Williams and helped the settlers against the setts con- 
Pequots, were about to take up the war club. We do ^"^'^^ 
not know that the charge was true, but it seems that the Narra- 
gansetts bore themselves in a threatening manner. The whites 
decided to take no chances with them. Collecting troops from 



112 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

Massachusetts, Connecticut, and Plymouth, they fell upon the 
chief stronghold of the Indians at what is now Kingston, Rhode 
Island, surrounded the Narragansetts, and killed so many of 
them that the tribe was never again a menace. 

Both sides were now thoroughly aroused. Town after town was 
attacked by the savages, and many terrible stories of cruelty are 
Fate of the preserved. Women and children were killed or cap- 
captives tured by the Indians, frequently in the dead of winter. 
If the prisoners submitted without protest and bore up under 
the hardships, -they lived with their captors until ransomed by 
friends. Weak persons who could not keep up with the march 
into the wilderness were often killed and left by the side of the 
trail. One of the narratives tells of a woman who begged pite- 
ously to be allowed to go back to her home. Annoyed by her 
complaint the Indians surrounded her with her child in her arms. 
When they had sung and danced about her as long as they wished, 
they crushed her skull and that of her child. Then they made a 
fire and burned the bodies, calling up the other children among 
the captives to show them what would happen to them also if 
they wished to go home. It was reported that the poor tortured 
woman did not shed a tear while she was within the circle, but 
continued to pray to God. The Indian thought a man should be 
indifferent to pain, and he liked to see his enemy, whom he hated, 
cry and cringe before him. He felt that his triumph was greater 
if his captives were made to suffer until they begged for mercy. 

About midsummer, 1676, the Indians began to be exhausted. 
They had not been fighting in great bands, and the task of the 
A long series settlers was to punish one tribe after another. One 
of battles of the leading Indian fighters was Captain Church, who 
made it a duty to follow and attack every band of hostile Indians 
he could reach. Hearing that Philip was at Mount Hope, a pen- 
insula near Providence, Church hastened to the place and seized 
the neck of the peninsula, so as to cut off" escape by land. Phihp, 
not knowing how completely he was surrounded, tried to flee and 



WARS AGAINST THE INDIANS AND THE FRENCH 113 

encountered the guards watching for him. He was recognized and 
slain by an Indian friendly to the whites. His death marked the 
end of the war in southern New England, but the The death 
fighting continued several weeks longer on the coast of °^ Philip 
Maine. When Philip was dead, his hands were cut off and sent to 
Boston. His head was placed on a pole and set up in Plymouth, 
where a day of thanksgiving was observed. The settlers had 
suffered severely, and their finer feelings were deadened by the 
brutal practices of their foes. It is the unhappy effect of war 
that it makes men forget the laws of kindness and generosity. 

King Philip's war broke the power of the Indians in New Eng- 
land forever and gave the whites the opportunity to settle where 
they pleased in the interior. But it did not remove ^larmofthe 
the last danger from Indian attacks. In the St. Law- French and 
rence valley were many Indians who became alarmed Indians in 
at the continuous approach of the whites into the 
northern forests. Among them lived the French, who feared 
that the English settlements would extend into Canada. The 
French and the Indians, therefore, acted together to check the 
advance of the English colonists ; and that is why the future 
wars with the Indians were at the same time wars against the 
French. They began whenever there was war between France 
and England in Europe and ended when the two nations made 
peace. There were four of these conflicts : King Wil- „ 

I Four wars 

Ham's war, 1690-1697 ; Queen Anne's war, 1701- 
1713; King George's war, 1745-1748; and the Seven Years' War, 
which lasted nine years in America, 1754-1763. Before we see 
what happened in each of them we must see how it was that France 
came to have colonies in America. 

The first French to come to North America were a colony of 
Huguenots, or Protestants, who tried to settle in what pj^gt prench 
is now Florida, from 1562 to 1565. They seemed about settlement 
to succeed in their plans when a Spanish soldier, ^" ^°^*^ 
Menendez, appeared, slew most of the settlers, and 



114 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

destroyed the settlement. A French captain, de Gourgues, took 
vengeance by kiUing the Spanish garrison at St. Augustine. The 
trouble arose because both nations claimed Florida. The Span- 
iards did not give up St. Augustine and sent a stronger garrison 
to it ; but France made no further attempt to settle in that region. 

Her next efforts were in the north, where Jacques Cartier, a bold 
explorer, sailed up the St. Lawrence as far as Quebec (see p. 25) 
French fur i^i 1534. The country was rich in furs and the French 
traders in decided to Open a trade with its inhabitants. Accord- 
Canada ingly, a colony was sent out and a fort built at Quebec, 
1541. The Indians gave so much trouble that the place was 
abandoned. But the river was not forgotten. The Algonquin 
Indians along its banks were great hunters, and French vessels 
came there regularly trading for furs. In one of them came, 1603, 
Champlain, a young man who could see how valuable it would be 
for his country if the French were established along the St. Law- 
rence. If you will look at the map, you will see that by going up 
the river and then through the lakes to Duluth one reaches nearly 
the middle point of the continent, and travel by water is possible 
Champiain's through all the distance. Champlain wished France to 
dream control the vast region reached b}^ this system of 
transportation. In 1608 he reestablished a fort at Quebec and 
began to found trading stations along the river. Farmers also 
arrived and the country began to take on the aspect of a permanent 
colony. It was known as New France. 

Champlain gave his life to the task he had assumed, dying at 
Quebec in 1635. There was only one serious mistake in all his 
His greatest colonial plans. He made friends with the Algonquins, 
mistake which was wise, since they were more numerous than 
the colonists. But the Algonquins got him to help them in a war 
against the Iroquois, their ancient enemies. Champlain wished 
to show the Algonquins how strong the French were and marched 
off to the war with his Indian friends. A battle was fought on 
the shore of the lake which now bears the name of the Frenchman. 



I 



WARS AGAINST THE INDIANS AND THE FRENCH 115 



The Algonquins were drawn up in battle lines. The Iroquois 
formed a line and began to charge. Suddenly Champlain stepped 
out from the ranks of his friends with a gun in his hand. He shot 
two Indians dead and wounded another. The Iroquois had not 
seen firearms before this and fled from the field in defeat. The 
Dutch were at that time just coming into the Hudson valley. 
From them the Iroquois got the white man's wonderful arms and 




Champlain defeating the Indians 

learned how to use them so well that they soon were a terror to 
the Algonquins. They never forgave the French for the part 
Champlain took in the battle near Lake Champlain in 1609. 

The Iroquois were the most powerful of all the Indians on the 
Atlantic coast. They lived in central New York and were in a 
position to turn back the French, who would have importance 
been pleased to follow the upper Hudson to Man- of the 
hattan Island. If France had held this river and the i^°i"°'s 
land in which the Iroquois lived, she would have cut into two 
parts the English colonies, which may well have meant that our 



116 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

history would have been far other than it has been. The Iroquois 
were first called the Five Nations, but in the eighteenth century 
they became the Six Nations (see p. 7). 

The French did not come to America in large numbers. In 
fact, of all the people of western Europe they are most inclined to 
The French stay at home. The French kings offered much aid to 
as colonists those who would settle in New France, but the colony 
grew slowly. This pleased the Indians. They welcomed people 
from whom they could buy goods and who, being traders, would 
never dispossess them of their hunting grounds. 

One of the things we must remember about the history of the 
French in Canada is the work of the Jesuits. These priests were 
T • eager to convert the Indians to Christianity. They en- 
dured great hardship, sometimes losing their lives, in 
order to convert the savages. Their work took them on long 
journeys, and thus they became explorers of the forest country 
along the St. Lawrence and the lakes. One of them was Father 
Marquette, who in company with a trader, Joliet, came to the 
Marquette Upper waters of the Wisconsin River in 1673 and floated 
and Joliet down its surface until he reached the Mississippi. So 
great a river high up in the interior surprised them, and they 
started to go down to its mouth. Days and days they paddled 
southward, passing the mouths of many great rivers. When they 
had reached what we now know is the Arkansas, they turned round, 
lest they should go so far that they could not get back with an 
account of their discovery. 

Their report aroused the enthusiasm of La Salle, a brave ex- 
plorer. He formed a plan to establish a fur company to trade 
with the people in the river valley. He also proposed 
to establish trading posts, and to collect information 
about the country. It was a great plan, but many enemies ap- 
peared to keep La Salle from carrying it into execution. After 
much discouragement he set out in December, 1681, to explore 
the Mississippi to the salt sea. April 6 in the following year he 



WARS AGAINST THE INDIANS AND THE FRENCH 117 ' 

passed out one of its several mouths to the Gulf of Mexico. 
Throughout his long journey he passed through a fertile and 
pleasant country far more suited for human abode than Canada. 

La Salle now went to France, where king and people heard 
gladly the story of his exploration. Furnished with four ships, 
with men and supplies for a colony, he sailed in 1684 to His 
settle at the mouth of the great river. But it was not attempted 
easy to find one of the small mouths that open on the ^° °"^ 
gulf through grassy marshes, on a coast where are many flat 
islands and twisting channels. He missed the place he sought and 
at last landed on the coast of Texas. He started overland to find 
the Mississippi, down which his friend Tonti had agreed to come 
from Canada. Bad luck still followed him; he lost his way 
and after wandering for a long time in the interior of the great 
West he was killed by his own men, who sought to escape out of 
the land into which he had led them. 

La Salle's plans did not fail entirely ; for in 1699 Iberville and 
Bienville, two Frenchmen from Canada, planted a trading post 
at Biloxi, near the mouth of the Mississippi. Other , . . 

Louisiana 

places were settled, and thus was founded the colony 
of Louisiana, named for the king of France, Louis XIV. The 
land was very fertile and it could be had very cheap, but the 
French peasants and farmers were unwilling to come and settle it. 
For that reason Louisiana grew slowly. A hundred years after 
it was founded it was merely a series of plantations along the 
lower Mississippi, with small settlements at St. Louis, Natchez, 
Baton Rouge, and Mobile. Thus the French held two colonies, 
Canada and Louisiana. Between these colonies was a vast forest, 
through which trails ran. On the trails were trading forts in 
which small garrisons protected the traders. 

During all this time the English were busy on the coast. They 
settled in orderly farming communities, and moved west- ^he English 
ward as fast as there were people to settle the frontier threaten the 
farms. Some day they would reach and pass the French 



118 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



mountains, and then it would be hard fighting between them and 
the French. The latter had this weakness, that they were thinly- 
settled over a vast region in trading forts. If their forts were 
attacked vigorously they would fall, and with them would go the 
French control of the great valley. 

In 1690 France and England were at war. Frontenac, a jnan 
of great foresight, was governor of Canada, and he thought it a 
KingWii- good time to get possession of the Hudson River line of 
liam'swar, communication. The one thing in the way was the 
I 90-1 97 ill-will of the Iroquois, and he tried to overcome this by 
showing them how powerful the French were. He thought the 

best way to do this was 
to raid the English 
settlements before the 
very eyes of the Iro- 
quois. Frontenac be- 
lieved that when his 
raids had been made, 
the messengers he sent 
to the Five Nations 
would have easy tasks 
to win them over. 

The first place to 
feel his anger was 
Schenectady, where 
sixty of the inhaljitants were killed and twenty-seven led away 
Frontenac's captives in a sudden attack over the snow. A second 
raids successful raid was made against Salmon Falls, New 

Hampshii'e, and a third against Fort Loyal, now Portland, Maine. 
The raiding parties were composed of French and Indians, and they 
killed and scalped their opponents as freely as if all had been 
Indians. Frontenac has been much blamed for allowing his 
Indians to take part in these assaults. 

The colonists were alarmed and decided to unite to conquer 




A Garrison House at York Maine built in 1676 



WARS AGAINST THE INDIANS AND THE FRENCH 119 

the St. Lawrence valley. They saw there would be trouble as 
long as the French could set the Algonquins on the Englishmen. 
Delegates met from Massachusetts, Connecticut, Ply- Movement 
mouth, and New York. They decided to raise a land against 
expedition which was to reach Quebec by way of ^"® ^'^ 
Lakes George and Champlain, while Massachusetts attacked by a 
fleet on the St. Lawrence. It was thought that Canada must 
yield if she were struck two blows at once, one by land and the 
other by water. The plan was good but hard to carry out. Small- 
pox appeared in the land expedition and the Iroquois allies failed 
to join the expedition, so that it got no further than Lake Cham- 
plain. Its retreat to the settlements caused the Indians to 
scoff, and more trouble came to the frontier than ever. The 
water expedition sent out by Massachusetts arrived so late that 
Frontenac was able to fortify Quebec, and the attack was a failure. 
Raids began again, and in one of them Haverhill, Massachusetts, 
was captured. One of the prisoners was Hannah Dustin, who was 
led away toward Canada. By watching her opportunity she slew 
her guard and escaped to her friends. The war ended in 1697 
when England and France made peace in Europe. Result of 
Neither side was satisfied, and it was freely predicted ^^^ "^^^ 
that fighting would soon begin again. Thus Frontenac had failed 
in his purpose. The Iroquois had not deserted the British, and 
the French had not got possession of the Hudson valley. 

As expected, the war soon reopened in Europe and the Indians 
of Canada made new raids on the New England settlements. In 
one attack they fell on Deerfield, Massachusetts, dur- Queen 
ing a bitter night in February. They climbed suddenly Anne's war, 
over the stockade that surrounded the town, slew fifty- ^701-1713 
three of the inhabitants, and captured one hundred and eleven. 
Among the prisoners were Rev. John Williams and his family. 
The Indians set out across the snow for their homes, taking the 
captives with them. Mrs. Williams and sixteen persons were 
killed because they could not keep up with the travelers, and 



120 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

others died of hunger. Those who reached Canada were distrib- 
uted among the warriors who took them prisoners. At the end 
of the war many "New England captives" were in Canada from 
various towns. Most of them were ransomed by their friends, 
among them Mr. WilHams, who returned to the Deerfield church. 
His daughter, Eunice, had become a Cathohc and married an 
Indian. She liked the forest life and refused to leave her husband 
and children in Canada. 

In 1713 the two sides were tired of fighting in Europe and a 
treaty of peace was made at Utrecht. Four of its terms we must 
Treaty of remember: (1) England got Acadia, the part of New 
Utrecht France east of Maine, and later changed its name to 

Nova Scotia ; (2) France agreed that the Iroquois should be sub- 
ject to England ; (3) Newfoundland was given to England ; and 
(4) England got the rich fur region round Hudson Bay. England 
received more benefit than France out of the war. 

In King William's war and Queen Anne's war the colonies of 
the North acted together against Canada, but they had little 
j^. success. In King George's war (1745-1748) they 

George's showed more strength. Thirty-two years had passed 
war, 1745- since the preceding war, and in that long time the 
^^'^ British colonies had gro^vn rapidly. They were much 

stronger than the French colonies, which grew slowly. War was 
hardly begun before Governor Shirley, of Massachusetts, laid 
plans to take Louisburg. This was a strong fortress the French 
had erected on Cape Breton Island to threaten the English in 
Nova Scotia and to keep them away from the mouth of the St. 
Lawrence. The place furnished refuge for French ships, which 
darted out and captured the boats of the New England codfishers 
and soon drove them from the coast. Shirley's arrangements 
Louisburg were secret. He collected a force of 4000 men from 
captured New England under command of Captain Pepperell, 
of Maine. They found Louisburg unprepared and surrounded 
it. An English fleet arrived in time to blockade the mouth of 



WARS AGAINST THE INDIANS AND THE FRENCH 121 

the St. Lawrence. Help could not come from Quebec, and after 
a siege of forty days the fortress surrendered. This was the 
most successful move in the war. England had poor ministers 
in those days, and the war dragged on until 1748, when peace 
was made without glory. Louisburg was handed back to France, 
much to the disgust of the New Englanders. 

In the first and second of these wars the first attacks had come 
from the French side, and they had been delivered by Indians. 
In the third the first blow was struck by the British Three wars 
colonies, and this shows how much stronger they were compared 
than formerly. In the third war Indians were used on each side, 
but they were only a small part of the forces engaged. This, also, 
shows how the war had changed. The British colonists were now 
a numerous people. They were fast settling the region east of 
the Appalachians and had begun to cast their eyes to the fine lands 
beyond these mountains. It was to get possession of these lands 
that the fourth and last of the wars between the French and 
English in America was fought. 

Both sides wished to hold the fork of the Ohio River where Pitts- 
burg now stands. Here meet the Alleghany, coming from the 
north, and the Monongahela, coming from the south. The fork of 
You may reach the Alleghany overland from Lake Erie t^e Ohio 
and pass down that stream to the fork. Or you may reach the 
Monongahela from the Potomac overland and pass down that 
stream to the fork. From this point you may go by water to most 
parts of the Mississippi basin. 

In 1754 a French force landed at what is now Erie, Pennsylvania, 
reached out to the Alleghany, and began to build forts to hold the 
country. Virginia claimed the Ohio valley, and per- The race to 
haps had a better right to it than any other English g^t it 
colony. Her governor sent George Washington, twenty-one years 
old, to warn the French off the lands they had entered. The 
warning was not heeded, and immediately a small force of 
Virginians set out to erect a fort at the fork of the Ohio. They 



122 THE PLAIN STORY OP AMERICAN HISTORY 

had hardly got their work done when a much stronger party of 
Frenchmen came down the AUegliany in canoes, took the new fort, 
named it Fort Duquesne, and turned the Virginians out of the 
country. Before the Virginians went far they met Washington 
with three hundred men coming to help them. They were not 
strong enough to retake Fort Duquesne, and so they contented 
themselves with building Fort Necessity, in which Washington 
hoped to hold out until help could come from Virginia. Even this 
he could not do. He was surrounded and forced to surrender, 
but was allowed to march away with the honors of war, July 4, 1754. 
Thus began the American part of a great struggle between France 
and England, a struggle which we generally call the seven years' 
war, because in Europe it extended from 1756 to 1762. 

Everybody in the colonies knew this was to be a greater war 
than either of the others against France, and efforts were made to 
The Albany get all the colonies to act together. A congress was 
congress called at Albany, 1754, and delegates were present 
from New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, 
New York, Pennsylvania, and Maryland. One of the delegates 
was Benjamin Franklin, who had long been concerned about the 
future of the colonies. He saw that if they united, they w^ould be 
able to defeat France, and if the time ever came when they should 
be threatened by England, they would be able to deal with her 
also. With the aid of friends he prepared a plan of union. There 
was to be a council made up of delegates from each colony. It 
should have the right to raise money by taxes on the colonies, and 
to spend it on armies or on other things that were for the general 
Franklin's welfare. The plan was adopted by. the Alliany con- 
plan gress, but it did not please the colonies, who did not like 
to give a council the power to tax them and to raise armies within 
their borders. It also displeased the king, because he feared that 
the colonies could not be controlled if they were allowed to unite. 
The day came when the colonies saw how much wisdom had been 
concealed in the suggestion of the shrewd Franklin. 



WARS AGAINST THE INDIANS AND THE FRENCH 123 




Meanwhile, England made preparations to strike at Canada. 
General Braddock, with two regiments of British regulars, was 
sent to drive the French from Fort Duquesne. He Braddock's 
was a brave man, but knew nothing about wilderness defeat, 1755 
fighting, and he was too proud to learn from those who wished to 
tell him. He marched from the Potomac toward the fork of 
the Ohio. When eight miles from that place, he was fired at by a 
body of French and Indians concealed in the forest. The colo- 
nial militia broke ranks and leaped behind trees and stones to fight 
in Indian fashion. Braddock thought 
they were deserting and swore roundly 
at them. To his horror he saw some 
of his regulars doing the same thing. 
He was more angry than ever and 
forced his men back into line in an 
open glade. They were thus forced to 
become targets to the foe whose where- 
abouts could not be known. They 
suffered severely, and the general him- 
self was killed. Washington, Avho was 
present, then took command and led 
the remnant of the army out of the 
conflict. They lost in killed and 
wounded 877 of the 1200 men actually in the battle. This un- 
favorable fight discouraged the English colonies and made the 
French most confident that they would succeed. Braddock's 
defeat occurred July 9, 1755. 

Now followed two years of disastrous fighting. England spent 
money freely and sent armies to America ; but there were weak 
ministers in London, who appointed bad generals, and 
all their plans in the colonies came to nothing. At last 
William Pitt, a man of great ability, came to be head of the 
government, and from 1758 the war took a better turn. He sent 
good generals to America, among them Wolfe, Amherst, and 




jU 



Braddock's campaign 



WUliam Pitt 



124 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



Forbes. Affairs now worked smoothly. The colonies furnished 
men liberally and the king paid for their support and gave them 
arms. 

Forbes was given the task of capturing Fort Duquesne. He 
had 1200 Highlanders, regulars, and nearly 5000 colonials from 
FortDu- Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia, and North Carolina, 
quesne As he advanced toward the fort, he heard that the In- 

**^®" dians there had deserted and left only the French. 

He hastened on with half his army to find Duquesne in ruins and 

all the defenders gone. This impor- 
tant post was now rebuilt and named 
Fort Pitt, after the great minister 
who showed so much confidence in 
the colonists. We know the place 
to-day as Pittsburg. Soon after it 
was taken, the many smaller forts 
in the Ohio valley were evacuated 
and the French power disappeared 
throughout that large area. 

The task which Pitt assigned to 
General Wolfe was to take Quebec 
Wolfe's with an army which was 
expedition to approach by the river. 
He arrived before the place late in 
June, 1759, with 9000 British troops 
and a strong British fleet. Within 
Quebec was Montcalm, a high- 
spirited and skillful general, with 15,000 men, many of whom 
were Canadian militia. Quebec is placed on a high bluff which 
cannot be carried if there is a skillful defense on the crest. 
Below the city a small river empties into the St. Lawrence. The 
British landed near this river, hoping to cross and enter the town 
from the rear. Montcalm met them with most of his army, and 
by hard fighting kept the British from crossing the river. After 




General James Wolfe 



WARS AGAINST THE INDIANS AND THE FRENCH 125 

two and a half months had been spent in this movement the 
weather began to become cool and Wolfe realized that he must 
take the place soon, or leave before his ships were frozen in the 
river. 

It was then that the British general formed the plan of ap- 
proaching Quebec by the Plains of Abraham, above the town. 
At this place the river bank is steep, but it is possible The Plains 
to scramble up. On the night of September 12 he of Abraham 
managed to seize a path up this slope, and by morning 4500 British 
troops were on the plains in 
full view of the city. As soon 
as Montcalm knew what had 
happened he hurried his troops 
out of the town and formed 
them on the plains before the 
British lines. This was a 
mistake. The works around 
Quebec were strong, and if 
Montcalm had stayed in them, 
he would probably have held 
Wolfe back until the weather 
forced the British to retire. 
To accept a battle in the open 
was bad for the French, who 

, 1 1 T General Montcalm 

were not as good soldiers as 

the British, The fighting had lasted only a few minutes when 
the Frenchmen broke ranks and fled for the cover of the town. 
In the moment of the heaviest firing both Wolfe and Montcalm fell 
mortally wounded. The death of their leader discouraged the 
French and they fled to Montreal. The British entered the for- 
tifications and held them through the winter, in spite of a deter- 
mined effort to starve out the defenders. A year later Mon- 
treal was taken by General Amherst, and with that Canada was 
lost to the French. 




126 THE PLAIN STORY OP AMERICAN HISTORY 

In 1763 peace was made in Europe in what was known as the 
Treaty of Paris. It changed the geography of North America. 
Treaty of Canada and Florida were handed over to England, who 
Paris t;hus had all the Atlantic coast from the Arctic Ocean 

to Lake Borgne, near the mouth of the Mississippi. Louisiana 
was given to Spain, who thus acquired the shores of the Gulf of 
Mexico west of Lake Borgne, including the mouth of the Missis- 
sippi. 

Thus ended the long conflict between France and England. 
The French were driven out, and the Spaniards held a vast western 
country with small forts so wide apart that they could not hold 
their own against a strong enemy. The English stock was planted 
along the Atlantic coast, and it was vigorously eating its way into 
the interior. It was, in fact, so strong that wise men began to 
wonder if it would not soon be able to free itself from British con- 
trol. 

QUESTIONS 

I. What have you learned about the tendeney of the colonies to act 
together? How was this tendency strengthened by the wars against the 
French and Indians? 

II. What was the cause of King Phihp's war? How did it begin? 
What was Phihp's part in it? Describe tlie fate of the Narragansetts. 
How did the Indians treat their captives? Why did they torture their 
victims? How did the whites prosecute the war? Describe the death 
of Phihp. How do you account for the treatment of his body by the 
whites ? What were the effects of his death ? 

III. How did the Canadian Indians view the advance of the whites 
northward? How did France come to act ^v^th them? Name the wars 
between the British and the French and Indians. Give the dates. 

IV. Describe the attempt of the French to settle in Florida. Why did 
it fail? Describe their early attempt to colonize Canada. What was 
Champlain's dream for Canada? What great mistake did he make? 
Describe his attack on the Iroquois. How did the Indians finally get 
firearms? Why was Iroquois friendship important for the French? 

V. Why did the Indians hke the French as colonists? Describe the 
work of the Jesuits for the Indians. What did they do as explorers? 
Describe the journey of Marquette and Joliet. How did La SaUe propose 



WARS AGAINST THE INDIANS AND THE FRENCH 127 

to carry on their work? Describe his journey. Describe his attempt to 
plant a colony. What was the end of his expedition? How was Loui- 
siana settled? Compare the English and French colonies. How did 
the English menace the French in the Mississippi basin? 

VI. When did King William's war begin and end? How did Frontenac 
try to win the Iroquois? Why? Describe his three raids. How did 
the colonies plan a counterblow? Describe the results of the land expedi- 
tion. Describe the exploit of Hannah Dustin. What was accomplished 
by the attack on Quebec by water? What was the result of the war? 

VII. When did Queen Anne's war begin and end? What was the 
Indian policy during this war? Describe the attack on Deerfield. De- 
scribe the parts of the treaty of Utrecht relating to North America. 

VIII. Give the dates of beginning and ending of King George's war. 
How had the English and French colonies grown since the preceding war? 
Why was Louisburg built ? Why did the New Englanders wish to take it ? 
Describe its capture. Compare the three wars just mentioned. 

IX. Why was the fork of the Ohio an important place ? How did the 
French approach it? the EngUsh? On what mission was Washington 
employed? What came of Virginia's attempt to fortify the fork of the 
Ohio? How was Washington defeated at Fort Necessity? When did 
the Seven Years' War begin and end in North America ? 

X. Why was the Albany congress called? Give its date. What col- 
onies were represented? What was Frankhn's plan of union? Why did 
it fail to find approval? 

XI. Describe Braddock's defeat. How did Washington save the 
remnant of the army? What was Pitt's service in the war? Describe 
the expedition of General Forbes against Fort Duquesne. How was the 
fort renamed ? What were the immediate consequences of its capture ? 

XII. What was Pitt's plan to take Quebec? To whom did he intrust 
the expedition? Who commanded the defense of Quebec ? Describe the 
defenses. How did the attack at first seem to fail? What was the sig- 
nificance of the Plains of Abraham ? Why was it an error for MontcalAi 
to offer battle ? How was Montreal taken ? 

XIII. In what particulars did the treaty of Paris affect affairs in 
North America? When was the treaty made? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

A Journey from Montreal to New York ; The French Colony in Florida ; 
The Journey of La Salle down the Mississippi ; The Attack on Deerfield ; 
Hannah Dustin's Exploit ; The Capture of Louisburg. 



CHAPTER X 



THE GOVERNMENT OF THE COLONIES 



The Governor. — In eight 
colonies the governor was ap- 
Royai gov- pointed by the king, 
ernors They were Virginia, 

Massachusetts, New York, 
New Jersey, North Carohna, 
South Carohna, New Hamp- 
shire, and Georgia. A royal 
governor represented the king 
in the colony. He was the 
man of highest honor and was 
usually an Englishman of high 
social position. Some of the 
royal governors were trained 
army officers and some were 
untitled relatives of important 
men in England. Some were 
men of fine intelligence and 
courage, while some were no 
credit to the king nor to the 
colonies to which they came. Some tried to rule well. Perhaps 
this can be said of most of them, but others seem to have thought 
of nothing but their own interests. 

The power of the royal governor was great. The theory was 
that he could do for the time he was in office anything the king 
could have done if he were in the colony. He could call the 

128 




A royal governor — Andros 



THE GOVERNMENT OF THE COLONIES 129 

assembly together or send it home, just as the king could call and 
dismiss the British parliament. When the assembly met, he sug- 
gested laws for their consideration. He could not make Powers in 
a law, but he could veto one. He must send to England lawmaking 
all laws that were passed, and they might be disallowed by the 
king, even after the governor had accepted them. This was a very 
strong check on the right of the people to make their own laws. 
It was exercised freely just before the revolution and created 
much hostile feeling toward the king and his governor. 

The governor was commander of the militia. At that time 
every able-bodied man was liable to be called on to defend his 
country. He was required to be drilled to some ex- Commander 
tent in the duties of a soldier. Such men made up the °^ mUitia 
militia. They were organized into companies and regiments, 
with the appropriate officers, and it was considered an honor to be 
a militia officer. The governor appointed all such persons and 
was himself the commander in chief. He was usually flattered 
by those who desired appointments. By giving places to the 
members of influential families, and b}^ holding out hopes of what 
might happen in the future, he was able to surround himself with 
a strong party of friends. In the last years before the 
revolution the cause of the king became so unpopular 
that any man who wished to be thought well of by the people 
would not seek an office of any kind from the governor. 

Besides the militia offices the governor had the right to ap- 
point many civil oflScers. The justices of peace for the counties 
were among them. These were honorable places, and other ap- 
the governor who filled them judiciously could make pointments 
himself many friends. There were some higher offices in the 
colony to which the governor did not appoint. To fill them was 
the act of the king, but in these cases the governor would nominate 
the persons whom he thought the best men for the places, and the 
king usually followed the suggestions. The higher judges and the 
members of the council were generally appointed in this way. 



130 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

The governor reported regularly to the king's officers who looked 
after the interests of the colonies. He received a long letter of 
His instruc- instructions when he was appointed, and from time to 
tioiis time, other letters of the same nature. They bound 

him to the king's interest. Many of the governors would have 
been more lenient with the colonies than they were if they had 
not received such strict instructions. 

The governors of proprietary provinces, Maryland, Pennsyl- 
vania, and Delaware, were in much the same position as royal 
Proprietary governors. They appointed a large number of officials, 
governors vetoed the laws if they chose, and commanded the 
militia. On the other hand, a proprietary governor was ap- 
pointed by the proprietor, and not by the king. His instructions 
came from the proprietor. He was less feared than a royal 
governor, because of the small power that the proprietor had to 
enforce his orders. If the people defied a royal governor, the 
royal navy and army could be brought against them. If they 
defied a proprietary governor, he could call out no force but that 
which he raised among the people themselves, and this force was 
not likely to fight against the people. There was a great deal of 
quarreling between the people and the governor in a proprietary 
colony. 

• In Connecticut and Rhode Island the governor was elected 
annually by the assembly. He did not have great power, partly 
An elected because he held office only one year and partly because 
governor ^he assembly which chose him was careful to keep most 
of the authority in its own hands. He was little more than a figure- 
head, and the assembly did not allow him to veto their laws. 

In whatever colony he lived, the governor was at the head of 
the social life. In New York, Philadelphia, Boston, and Charles- 
Head of ton he lived in state. His dinners and receptions were 
social life the events of the season. Handsome dresses ordered 
from London were brought out to honor them ; and prosperous 
merchants with their wives, sonSj and daughters danced the 



THE GOVERNMENT OF THE COLONIES 



131 



minuet, drank punch, and passed compliments in his house with 
as much grace and dignity as one saw at the house of a lord mayor 
of London. 

In Virginia, especially, the governor was a social leader. The 
colony had no large town. Williamsburg, the capital, was only 
a country village with a few hundred inhabitants. It The Virginia 
contained the mansion of the governor, the residences governor 
of some of the high officials, the homes of the president and faculty 




The "Palace" at New Berne 

Residence of the royal governor of North Carolina, said to have been one of the finest 
residences in the colonies. It was built by the people at a cost of £15,000. 

of William and Mary College, the winter homes of a few of the 
wealthy men in the colony, several taverns, and the humbler 
houses of the people who looked after the comfort of the persons 
just mentioned. In this small town the winters were given over 
to balls and dinners. The governor and his circle made what was 



132 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

pronounced a colonial court. The gay life was modeled after the 
life in court circles in England. In the summer the gentlemen 
retired to their estates, where there were other amusements. 
Among them were deer hunting and fox-hunting. The governor 
was a leader of outdoor sports ; for it was thought proper for him 
to set the standard in such English customs as were followed by 
the country gentlemen of England. 

To aid the governor with advice a body of councilors was ap- 
pointed. They varied in number from six to twelve. In every royal 
colony but one, Massachusetts, they were appointed 
by the king, but the governor recommended the men 
the king appointed. As a governor was usually an Englishman 
sent over for the purpose, the position of councilor was the high- 
est office to which an inhabitant of the colony could aspire, and 
a councilor was held in high esteem in social matters. He 
usually was very loyal to the king. In fact, no man would be ap- 
pointed to this position who was not a king's man. In the quarrel 
between king and people, the governor and council were held to be 
the enemies of the interests of the people. This refers to the royal 
and proprietary provinces only. In Connecticut and Rhode 
Island the council was elected by the assembly. Massachusetts 
had a peculiar system. Although it was a royal colony and the 
governor was appointed by the king, the council was elected by the 
assembly. This weakened the power of the king in the colony and 
was a source of disappointment to the governor in many matters. 

In every colony except Pennsylvania the legislature had two 
branches, or houses : the assembly and the council. Sometimes 
The as- the word "assembly" was used to indicate both houses, 

sembiy The lower house in Virginia was called "the house of 

burgesses," and in Massachusetts both houses were known as 
"the great and general court." The members of the lower house 
were elected by the voters ; but we must not think that 

The voters 

every man in the colony could vote. It was generally 
thought that none should vote but those who were wise enough 



i 



THE GOVERNMENT OF THE COLONIES 133 

to take part in government. In most colonies people who had 
no property were not to be allowed to take part in selecting the 
men who decided what taxes should be laid. The rule was, there- 
fore, to require that every man who voted should first show that he 
possessed a certain amount of propert3\ By this means a large 
part of the men could not vote. It seems, also, that a great many 
who could have voted took little interest in the elections. We have 
no accurate way of estimating the exact number of votes cast in 
the elections ; but it is believed that the actual voters never num- 
bered more than eight per cent of the population and that they 
often were as few as two per cent. In 1912 the number of voters 
was seventeen per cent of the entire population. 

In every colony but Pennsylvania the council was an upper 
house of the legislature, or assembly. Every law passed must 
have its approval before it was binding. As the The upper 
council was appointed by the king and under the in- house 
fluence of the governor, any law that was not in accordance with the 
policy of the king could be defeated in the council. This power 
was often exercised in the long struggle preceding the revolution. 
In some colonies the assembly and the council became so much 
opposed on matters they thought of the first importance that the 
assembly would not pass any law at all until they got what they 
wanted from the council. But the other house, under strict 
instructions from England, would not yield an inch of their former 
contention, and thus the legislature came to a standstill. In such 
cases the people sided with their elected representatives. This 
state of affairs only added to the unpopularity of the king in the 
colonies. 

The assembly had a speaker who presided over its sessions. 
He had powers like those of the speaker of the house of commons 
in England. He was the highest officer in the colony 
who was elected through authority derived from the 
people, and the colonists looked on him as their leader against 
the king. He was selected for his ability in defending the cause of 



134 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

the colony. He was not in favor with the governor, but the esteem 
of the colonists made up for the loss. 

Although we speak of the king's part in the government and 
of his appointment of officers, we should remember that actually 
The board he took a small part in the affairs of the colonies. To 
of trade have settled in person the many matters that came 
to England from America would have taken a large part of his time. 
All this kind of business was intrusted to a committee with various 
names, but it was generally known as the board of trade. It 
advised the king what colonial laws he ought to veto, what men 
should be appointed governors, and what ought to be the general 
policy in the management of the colonies. It prepared the in- 
structions sent to the governors and received the reports of these 
high officers. Few of its members were ever in America or knew 
what the colonies needed, and they did not often trj^ to find out 
what they could do to promote the welfare of the colonies. They 
were more anxious to know how the colonies could be 

Its oolicv 

made to contribute to the welfare of England. It was 
this blind policy that showed the colonists that they must look for 
their own advantage in an independent government. 

In order to protect their interests the colonies appointed agents 
to live in London and see that no injury was done them without 
FrankUn protest. Their sole power was in persuasion. Benja- 
as agent ^in Franklin was agent for several colonies. He was 
a man of great shrewdness, and his reputation as a scientist 
opened to him the doors of the learned men of London. In Phila- 
delphia, where he was long an editor, he made his first scientific 
discovery. By sailing a kite in a thunderstorm he proved that the 
electricity of the atmosphere was the same as the electricity we 
get from a frictional machine in a laboratory. From this he de- 
duced the theory of lightning rods as a means of protecting houses 
from damage. The theory was well received in all the leading 
countries of Europe, and when Franklin arrived in London it 
aided him in his service as agent. But all that he could do did not 



THE GOVERNMENT OF THE COLONIES 135 




Benjamin Franklin 



136 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

break down the determination of the king and the board of trade 

to make the colonies contribute to the prosperity of the .British 

merchants. 

The colony was divided into counties or towns. In the South 

it was counties and in New England it was towns. Virginia 

The Virginia adopted the county in imitation of the English county, 

county and the other Southern colonies followed her example. 

A county in the South is relatively a large division. The ideal 

is that it shall not be so large that the inhabitants cannot all go 

conveniently to the courthouse, at a central point. One of its 

sides was rarely more than forty miles, and generally it was much 

smaller. It had no townships. At the head of county affairs was 

the sheriff. He arrested those who broke the laws and placed 

them in jail until trial could be had in a court. He collected the 

_ .„ county taxes, summoned the juries, and executed the 

The sheriff ... ', ^-^ ' » > • n 

decisions oi the court. He was a man'oi great inilu- 

ence and had a number of deputies who served under him. He 

was looked upon as the friend of the poor and the guardian of the 

peace. 

The able-bodied men of each county were required to serve in 
the militia. In most counties there was one regiment, but very 
The county large counties had more than one. The regiment was 
°"^*i* divided into companies. Over the regiment was a 

colonel and a lieutenant colonel, over each company a captain. 
Two or more regiments made a brigade with a brigadier general. 
The law required that there should be regular musters of the 
militia; that is, regular meetings for drilling in marching and 
firing. Muster day was a general holiday. Horse racing, cock- 
fighting, wrestling, and frequentlj^ more violent kinds of physical 
encounter occurred at most musters. The militia system was not 
confined to the Southern counties. It was established as truly in 
the New England and Middle colonies as in the South. 

The New England town was built up around the meetinghouse, 
as the Virginia county was built up around the courthouse. It 



THE GOVERNMENT OF THE COLONIES 137 

was small enough to make it possible for all the inhabitants, in- 
cluding the women and children, to attend services in the meeting- 
house. A town was rarely more than ten miles across. The New 
and frequently it was smaller. In such a town no England 
man would live more than five miles from the center. *°^" 
All the men of the town who had the right to vote took part in the 
town government directly. This means that they met at fixed 
times in town meeting, decided what taxes they should lay and 
how they would spend the money they collected, and did whatever 
else they thought necessary for the welfare of the town. The 
town meeting also selected the selectmen, a kind of executive com- 
mittee to carry out the measures that had been adopted. It chose 
the other officers of the town and elected the two men who repre- 
sented it in the colonial legislature. 

In the Middle colonies a mixed form of local government was in 
use. We find a county about as large as the Virginia county, and 
also a town, existing as a subordinate part of the county, a mixed 
Many of the settlers in New Jersey and Long Island ^orm 
were from New England and established the town as soon as they 
settled. But the proprietor was not willing that the towns should 
be as independent as in New England. He established a county 
to have oversight over the towns and took away from the towns 
most of their independence. This mixed form was found in its 
most perfect condition in Pennsylvania. All the western and 
northwestern states have adopted this system of local govern- 
ment, the town changing its name to township. 

Each colony had its own system of courts, the lowest of which 

was that held by the justice of the peace. It had authority to try 

small cases, criminal and civil. The iustice of the peace 

,, • 1 T 1 T Three courts 

was generally appomted by the governor. In some 

colonies all the justices of the peace in a county would meet and 

hold what was known as a court of quarter session. It took up 

both judicial affairs and ordinary county business. This court 

was very important in the South, where there was no town meeting. 



138 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

It laid the county tax, appointed road overseers, directed the ex- 
penditure of county money, and performed many other adminis- 
trative duties. A third rank of courts was the ordinary county 
court, in some colonies called a superior county court. It was held 
by judges appointed by the governor or elected by the assembly. 
In this court was tried the large majority of criminal and civil 
cases. A civil case is one that concerns property and a criminal 
case is one that has to do with a crime. Here a jury must 
be called if it was demanded by one of the parties. Above 
the county court was a high court to which appeals were 
made. It corresponds to our state supreme courts. It was held 
by judges of high station. The highest court of all was held by 
the king, to whom every man might appeal his case if he. did not 
like the decision of the courts in the colonies. But the expense 
of making the appeal to the king was great. It meant that the 
man making the appeal and his witnesses must go to England ; and 
by this means it came about that only rich men could make such 
appeals. 

QUESTIONS 

I. What colonies had royal governors? What power had such gov- 
ernors in lawmaking? How did the king have power over lawmaking? 
Describe the governor's authority over the mihtia. How did his appoint- 
ments increase his influence? What officials did he appoint other than 
military? Describe his right to nominate certain officers. What was 
the nature of the instructions sent to a royal governor? Describe the 
power of proprietary governors. Why was he less respected than a royal 
governor? What was the position of a governor elected by the assembly? 
In what colonies was the governor chosen in this way ? Was the governor 
of any colony elected by the people ? What was the relation of the gover- 
nor to the social life of the colony? Describe the life in the capital of 
Virginia. 

II. What was the council? How were the members selected ? What 
was the social importance of the members? What side did the council 
take in the dispute over the power of the king? How was the council 
appointed in Massachusetts? 



THE GOVERNMENT OF THE COLONIES 139 

III. Describe the two houses of a colonial legislature. Who might 
vote? Did all vote who had the right? Compare the vote of colonial 
times with the vote of present times. What was the upper house ? What 
were its powers in lawmaking ? How did the council defend the interests 
of the king? What were the results? Describe the office and power of 
the speaker. 

IV. Why did the king not supervise the colonies in person? To 
whom did he leave the duty ? Describe the purpose of the board of trade. 
Did the board understand the real needs of the colonies? Describe the 
position of colonial agent. On what was FrankUn's reputation as a 
scientist founded ? How did it help him serve the interests of the colonies? 

V. Name three forms of local government. What was the origin of 
the Virginia county? Into what colonies did it extend? What was the 
center of county hfe? How large was a typical county? What was the 
position. of the sheriff? How was the mihtia organized? What officers 
did it have? Describe the musters. What was the center of the New 
England town? How was it governed? What did the selectmen do? 
Describe the mixed form of local government. How did it originate? 
In what colony was it most developed ? In what ways has it survived ? 

VI. What grades of colonial courts can you mention? Describe the, 
lowest. What was its duty ? How was it held ? How were the justices 
of the peace appointed ? What was the court of quarter session ? What 
business did it do which was not judicial? What was the county superior 
court ? How was it held ? How were the judges selected ? What is the 
difference between civil and criminal cases ? What was the court above 
the county court? What kind of business went to it? What judicial 
authority had the governor ? What kind had the king ? Why was appeal 
to England difficult? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Salary of the Massachusetts Governor ; Governor Shirley of 
Massachusetts ; Governor Tryon of North Carolina ; Colonel Wilham 
Byrd as a Member of the Council. 



CHAPTER XI 

THE CAUSES OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION 

The American revolution occurred because two groups of men, 
one in England and one in America, wished to do exactly opposite 
Position of things. The king, ministers, and parliament wished to 
the king rule the colonies for the advantage of the merchants 
and other people in Great Britain. They thought the colonies 
owed obedience to the mother country, forgetting that the day 
comes when every child is so large that he cannot be directed solely 
by the commands of his parents. They thought, also, that the 
king and parliament could make such laws and other rules for the 
colonies as the former thought wise. The king was very sincere 
and did not understand why the colonists thought their liberties 
would be lost if they did as he wished. Parliament and most of 
the British people agreed with him. 

Two things stand out in all the replies of the colonists to the 
king. One was the conviction that America would some day be a 
Position great nation, but that it could not be great if it existed 
of the for the advantage of the mother country. The other 

Amencans ^^^ ^j^^ beHef that they had as much right as the people 
of England to make the laws under which they lived. It is true 
that they had never entirely made their own laws ; for all that the 
assemblies did was liable to be defeated by the governor or by 
the king, who could annul laws ; but the colonists grew yearly 
more and more confident that there were some things that not 
even the king should have a voice in. They thought that if they 
gave in on these points, they would never cease to be the tools 
of the king and the British merchants. 

140 



THE CAUSES OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION 141 



In 1763 the war with France came to an end and Canada was 
handed over to England. From Georgia to Maine the inhabit- 
ants joyfully celebrated when they received the news; for Anew 
they knew no more Indians raids would fall upon them colonial 
from Canada. At that moment they were very loyal to P^'^^ram 
Great Britain. Suddenly came an announcement which changed 
all their joy into anxiety. Two harsh laws had passed parliament 
(1764) and another was threatening. One was a law for the more 
rigid collection of duties in America. At the same time the 
"molasses act," a law so bad that the government had not tried 
to enforce it, was revived and instructions given for its execution. 
A second law provided that an army should be kept in America, 
whose expenses were to be paid out of the revenues collected at the 
colonial ports. Putting the two laws together, the colonists con- 
cluded that an army would be sent over to watch them and that 
it would be supported by money 
collected from the Americans 
themselves. 

The third law was a stamp act, 
providing that stamps must be 
affixed to newspapers The stamp 
and legal documents. ^^^ 
The stamps would be sold by the 
king's officers and the proceeds 
would go into his treasury. It was not passed at once, but was 
only suggested, with the statement that it might be passed later. 
Meanwhile the colonies were invited to say what form of taxation 
they would like better than a stamp tax. Grenville, the British 
minister, promised to give due attention to any suggestion from 
the Americans. He waited a year, but all he heard from the 
colonies was the declaration that parliament had no right to lay 
taxes on them. Both he and parliament took this for defiance and 
met it by passing the stamp act in 1765. 

Everywhere in the colonies were now heard words of wrath. 




stamps issued under the stamp act 



142 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

The men who were most prominent in the assembhes took the lead 
in declaring that the stamp act would be resisted in all possible 
Henry and ways. Meetings were called, and the young men formed 
Otis themselves into societies called the " sons of liberty." 

Two men did much to arouse the people, Patrick Henry, of Vir- 
ginia, and James Otis, of Massachusetts. They were both great 
orators and painted in vivid pictures the fate of the colonies when 
bound hand and foot and forced to pay taxes at the command of 
England. 

From hot words the "sons of liberty" turned to violent deeds. 
The offices of the agents appointed to sell the stamps were be- 
Vioient re- sieged, the officials themselves were hooted on the 
sistance streets, windows were broken, and the agents so threat- 
ened that they preferred to resign office rather than take further 
risk. When the day came for the law to go into force, there was 
nobody to sell stamps, except in South Carolina and Georgia, 
where the people showed their disappointment by refusing to buy 
or use stamps. Any one could see that if the act was enforced, it 
must be at the point of the bayonet ; and for such a course the king 
was not ready. 

While these things were happening the colonies called what 
became known as the "stamp act congress." It was a meeting of 
The stamp delegates from all the colonies but New Hampshire, Vir- 
act con- ginia, North Carolina, and Georgia ; and from these 
gress, 17 5 ^^^^ colonies came words of sympathy. The meeting- 
place was New York, and the year was 1765. Petitions were pre- 
pared and sent to the king asking for the repeal of the stamp act, 
and resolutions were adopted declaring that parliament had no 
right to tax the colonies. The congress was the first step of the 
colonies to act together against England. The petition sent to 
London was written in respectful terms, but it was a firm protest 
against what the colonists considered a wrong. 

The firm stand taken in America opened the eyes of the king 
and his ministers. They did not think it worth while to make 



THE CAUSES OP THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION 143 




Patrick Henry 



144 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

unyielding enemies out of the colonists merely to sell a small quan- 
tity of stamps. On this account parliament changed its attitude 
The act and repealed the stamp act a year after it was enacted, 

repealed Shouts of joy burst from the lips of the Americans when 
they got the news. They believed that the king had a good 
heart, and for once he was popular with his American subjects. 
If he had been wise, he might from this time have made the colo- 
nists his most loyal friends. 

But George III was never a wise man. He was narrow minded 
and stubborn. He loved to have his way, and when he once 
The de- came to feel that the colonists were resisting him, he set 
ciaratory act his heart on maintaining his authority. It was to 
please him, therefore, that parliament passed what was known 
as the declaratory act. It announced, although the stamp act 
was repealed, that parliament had power to tax the colonies. 

At first it seemed that the declaratory act was merely a way 
of saving the king from a complete backdown, and there were 
Town- persons who thought it would amount to nothing, 

shend's But in 1767 Townshend, one of the ministers, gave it a 
duties, 1767 gpgg^i; (jgg^j Qf force when he got parliament to pass an 
act to lay duties on tea, red and white lead, glass, and paper. The 
money thus received was to be spent on salaries in America. 
Townshend's plan was as bad as Grenville's, and the colonies were 
thrown into a state of terror. It could not be doubted that the 
king and his ministers would not desist until the}'^ forced the colo- 
nies to pay taxes laid in England. This was something the Ameri- 
cans were determined not to do, and from 1767 the two sides 
drifted farther and farther apart until war was inevitable. With 
one accord the Americans refused to import the articles on which 
Townshend proposed to collect duties. 

In Massachusetts Samuel Adams was the leading advocate of 

resistance. He believed that America must be independ- 

Adams's ^^^ ^^ order to reach her high destiny. Above all, he 

circular wished to get the colonies to act together. He wrote a 



THE CAUSES OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION 145 



circular letter with this object in view, and the Massachusetts 
assembly adopted it and sent it to the other colonies. It called 
upon them to unite in support of the principle that Americans 
should pay no taxes which they had not themselves imposed. 
When the king saw this circular, he was very much aroused. He 
considered it a call to rebellion. 
But Adams's bold spirit found 
much support in all the colonies. 
Virginia received the circular 
favorably and replied that she 
would stand with Massachu- 
setts. The other colonies were 
equally outspoken. 

The king was firm and sent 
General Gage with a thousand 

soldiers to Boston Troops sent 
to see that the to Boston 
revenue laws were enforced. 
The troops arrived in Septem- 
ber, 1768, and were received 
by the town in silence. Gage 
wished to avoid trouble, and 
the leaders of the people were 
of the same mind ; and for 
eighteen months peace reigned. 
But March 5, 1770, a serious outbreak occurred. The people 
were engaged in their ordinary affairs when the bells rang out as 
for fire. Crowds gathered to find that a small mob was worrying 
a group of British soldiers commanded by Colonel Preston. 
Taunting words were shouted and snowballs were hurled. One 
of the soldiers struck by a stick fired his gun, probably without 
orders. The crowd rushed on him and were received with a fire 
from the rest of the soldiers. Five of the mob were killed and 
six were wounded before the angry people were quieted and 




Samuel Adams 



146 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



induced to go to their homes. Next day the troops were 
removed from the town and placed in the castle that com- 
The " Bos- manded the entrance to the harbor. This was done at 
ton mas- the request of Samuel Adams and John Hancock, 
^^"^ who were the recognized leaders of the colonial party 

in Boston. Had the troops remained in the town it seems likely 




, State Street, Boston, about 1 790 
Scene of the "Boston massacre." 

that fighting between them and the townsmen would have begun 
again. Thus happened the "Boston massacre," an event which 
was described far and wide as an act of British tyranny, and 
which did much to make the colonists hate the face of a British 
soldier. 

By this time it was clear that the Townshend duties were a fail- 
ure. In fact they brought the king but £295 a year above the 



THE CAUSES OE THE AJNIERICAN REVOLUTION 147 

cost of collection ; for the colonists had agreed to import no 
dutiable articles. Recognizing that the duties were a failure, 
parliament now voted to repeal all but the tax on tea, Townshend 
which was retained as a matter of principle. The duties 
Americans were pleased at this sign of good will and ^°^^^^ 
began to buy freely all kinds of British merchandise but tea. Of 
that commodity they would have none. 

There was no way of making the people buy tea if they did not 
choose to buy it ; and so for three years the situation remained 
unchanged. But in 1773 the East India Company, " Boston 
which was nearly bankrupt, got permission from the tea party " 
British government to ship a large amount of tea to the colonies 
at very favorable rates. It was thought that they would offer 
their goods so cheap that the Americans would not refuse to buy. 
To the colonists this was but an attempt to bribe them to desert 
their principles ; and they met it with scorn. When the ships 
loaded with tea arrived, nobody could be found who would under- 
take to sell it. Agents who had been appointed were glad to escape 
the wrath of the people by resigning their appointments or by flee- 
ing to places of safety. In Boston the tea ships lay at the docks for 
many days. The governor would not let them go home with the 
tea on board ; for that would show that the people had won. The 
people did all they could to keep them from landing the cargoes. 
Finally the ships were boarded by a band of young men whom 
Adams had gathered, whose Indian disguises hardly concealed their 
identity. They threw the tea overboard into the harbor so 
quickly that it is evident they had rehearsed their parts before 
they came to the docks. Three hundred and forty-two chests of 
tea were destroyed, and the members of the famous "tea party" 
went to their homes without interference. They were not pun- 
ished for destroying private propert}^ The incident aroused the 
attention of the people far and wide. Some persons laughed at it, 
others thought it an act of justice, and most of the people were 
glad that the king had been defied. 



148 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

The quarrel between the colonies and the king had now been 
going on ten years. First came the three harsh acts of Grenville, 
steps taken, at which the Americans protested so strongly that one 
1764 to 1773 of them, the stamp act, was repealed. Next were the 
Townshend acts, 1767, imposing duties on five kinds of merchandise. 
They also aroused the opposition of the people, who agreed to stop 
importing British goods. So great was the failure of the acts 
that the duties were repealed on all but tea. This led to the 
" Boston tea party." In all these years of quarrel there was no 
colony that did not oppose the wishes of the king. Virginia, the 
oldest and largest, and Georgia, the youngest, felt equally that 
parliament should not be allowed to lay taxes at will on the colo- 
nies. But Massachusetts was most outspoken in her opposition, 
due, it seems, to the efforts of Samuel Adams, and she was the first 
to feel the weight of England's displeasure. 

News that the tea had been thrown overboard at Boston was 
duly carried to London. The king considered it defiance and de- 
Three harsh termined to make his authority respected. At that 
laws time parliament was controlled by men whom the king 

had in the hollow of his hand. It did not hesitate to do all he 
wished, and at his suggestion it passed several harsh laws. The 
first fell on Boston. It was voted to close the port of that town, 
which meant that no ship could lawfully sail from Boston to any 
other place in the world. This restriction was to continue until 
payment was made for the tea thrown overboard. Another law 
struck at self-government in Massachusetts. The power of the 
town meeting was reduced, and many officers hitherto elected by j 
the people were now to be appointed by the governor. A third fl 
act was the Quebec act. It erected a great colony in the region 
west of the Alleghanies, with Quebec as the center. The govern- 
ment of this colony was to be kept strictly in the hands of the king, 
and it was felt in New England that the new colony would be a 
check on the action of the seacoast colonies. These acts of parlia- 
ment convinced the Americans that the British government would 
use all its power to make itself obeyed. 




THE CAUSES OP THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION 149 

The colonists knew they must choose between submission 
and war. The more independent minded welcomed the idea of 
war, believing it would lead to independence. But a policy of 
there were many who thought that war was the worst '^^^^y 
possible calamity. They knew that the British government was 
the best in Europe and hesitated to rebel against it until the last 
hope of reconciliation was gone. They wished to send petitions to 
the king urging him to relent. Lest these 
men might say that war had been begun 
too rashly, it was decided to adopt a policy 
of delay. 

Meanwhile, the news that the port of 
Boston was to be closed aroused indigna- Frankim's political cartoon. 
tion in every colony. Supplies AcaUfrom '''^"^ 

. , T ,, \t:,„:„:^ (An allusion to a mythical 

were sent to relieve the poor virgima ^^^^^ supposed to have the 

people thrown out of employment, and the ^ut7nto°piec?s'.r "^^^^ ^""'"^ 
Virginia assembly ordered that the day on 

which the Boston port bill went into force should be observed as 
a day of fast and prayer. The governor of Virginia became very 
angry at this and sent the assembly home. Before the members 
left the town of Williamsburg, the colonial capital, they met in a 
famous old inn, the Raleigh Tavern, and passed resolutions calling 
on the colonies to send delegates to a congress to consider "the 
united interest of America." 

The call found a ready response, and delegates were chosen in 
all the colonies but Georgia. They met in Philadelphia, Septem- 
ber 5, 1774. They represented the whole continent. First con- 
as they put it, and the meeting is, therefore, called the tinentai 
first continental congress. Its chief work was to publish ^°^^^^^^ 
a statement of the rights of the colonies in which the claim was 
made that the assembly alone could make laws for the colony, 
subject to the king's veto. If George III had agreed with this idea, 
the colonies might have been allowed a government something like 
that of Canada to-day, and the whole controversy would have been 



150 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



settled. The congress also sent a petition to the king and another 
to the British people, asking that they be allowed the ordinary- 
rights of Englishmen. The colonists who still supported the king 




Independence Hall. Philadelphia 

now began to be called "tories," while those who favored resistance 
were known as "whigs." 

Before there was time to see what effect the addresses of the 
congress would have, fighting had begun in Massachusetts. 
General Gage was in Boston with four regiments of regulars. 



THE CAUSES OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION 151 



He had been ordered to put down the discontented element 
throughout the colony ; but he found so much opposition among 
the people that he dared not move away from his forti- Battle of 
fications around the town. At length he learned that Lexington 
the patriots had collected some military stores at Concord, eighteen 
miles from Boston, and in the evening of April 18, 1775, he sent 
a force to seize them. Paul Revere, riding ahead of the troops, 




The Battle of Lexington, April 19, 1775 

dashed along the roads past the farm-houses, shouting, "The red- 
coats are coming!" and the people flew to arms. At dawn sixty 
militiamen stood on the commons at Lexington. It was a small 
force to oppose the column of regulars, but it refused to disperse 
at the command of the British officer. A volley was fired by the 
regulars, killing eight and wounding ten of the militiamen. The 
rest retreated, and the British proceeded to Concord, only to find 
that the stores they sought had been removed. At Concord bridge 
there was. another fight, and then the troops began to withdraw 



152 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

to Boston. By this time the whole countryside was aroused. 
Farmers left their plows in the field and rode at full speed to 
Retreat Concord. Every stone or available fence from that 

from place to Boston is said to have concealed a man bent 

Concord ^^^ killing the soldiers. The British were pressed so 
hard that they reached their fortified lines with a loss of two 
hundred and seventy-three, killed, wounded, and missing. The 
militia followed in great numbers and began at once the siege of 
Boston. 

Gage had 7000 men, not enough to defeat the besiegers. 
He was safe behind the strong intrenchments he had thrown up, 
and for a time gave himself little concern about the 
Americans. On the seventeenth of June he was sur- 
prised to see that the despised militia had taken possession in the 



A powderhorn used at Bunker Hill 

night of a high hill behind Charlestown. The place commanded 
his own lines, and if it were held and fortified, he would be forced 
to withdraw from the town. He therefore made all haste to 
seize the hill. A strong body of troops was thrown across Charles 
River, landing at the foot of the heights. They slowly formed a 
line of battle and began to march up the slope, expecting that 
the defenders would retreat. Near the top they received such 
a heavy fire that they broke and rushed to the safety of their 
boats. Their officers rallied them and brought them again to 



THE CAUSES OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION 153 



the charge, and again they were driven back. . The British officers 
were deeply ashamed that their men had fled before the Americans 
and secured more troops before they made a third charge. But 
when they neared the top of the hill, the militiamen retreated 
because their ammunition was used up. In this action, known as 
the battle of Bunker Hill, the British lost more than a thousand 
men, the Americans four hundred and forty-one. It was the first 
time the colonials had met 
the British on a battle field. 
They fought so well that 
they felt they had no reason 
to dread another engage- 
ment. General Gage con- 
tinued inactive behind the 
defenses of Boston. 

A month before the 
battle of Bunker Hill the 
second conti- second con- 
nental congress tinentai 
met in Phila- «<"ig«ss 
delphia. Although the 

battle of Lexington had been fought, the more timid patriots 
were still unwilling to take bold steps against England. The 
other wing of the patriot party were still loath to go forward 
without their aid, and the result was further delay while a last 
appeal was made to the king, although there was little hope 
that the appeal would be granted. Meanwhile, congress took up 
the task of defense. All that Massachusetts had done in that 
way was approved ; the army that surrounded Boston was taken 
under the direction of the continental government, and George 
Washington, of Virginia, was appointed its commander-in-chief. 
Thus, the country was being put in a state of war, regardless of 
the assertion that it desired peace. The next chapter will deal 
with the story of the war. 




BUKKER HirJLi 

AND 

COf^TON 



ML 



154 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

QUESTIONS 

I. What was the king's idea of the duty of a colony? What two 
principles stand out in the American contention? Were the colonies 
ever entirely self-governing? What would have been the effect on their 
history had they yielded to the king? 

II. What new colonial program was adopted by the British govern- 
ment in 1764 ? Why were the colonists taken by surprise ? What change 
occurred in their feeUngs? What was the "molasses act" (Seep. 101)? 
What was the stamp act? Why was its passage delayed? What was 
the nature of the argument against it? Who led in the argument? 
How did the colonists take its passage? Who were the " sons of liberty " ? 
What was the stamp act congress? What did it do? Why was the 
stamp act repealed ? 

III. What was the declaratory act? Why was it passed? What 
duties did Townshend levy ? How did the colonies receive the Townshend 
duties? What was Samuel Adams's position among the colonists? De- 
scribe his famous circular letter. How was it received in England and 
in the colonies? How were the Townshend duties modified? 

IV. Why were troops sent to Boston ? How was their arrival greeted 
by the people? Describe the so-called "Boston massacre." What effect 
did it have in the colony? 

V. What privileges were granted to the East India Company? How 
was its tea received in America? Describe the "Boston tea party." 
What impression did it make ? Recall the steps in the quarrel between the 
king and the colonists, 1763 to 1773. 

VI. How did the king interpret the "Boston tea party"? What 
was his relation with parliament ? Describe the measures taken to punish 
Boston. How was the Massachusetts charter changed? What was the 
Quebec act? Why was it disliked? What choice of conduct was now 
left to the colonists? What course did they adopt temporarily? 
Why? 

VII. How did the other colonies help Boston? What call was sent 
out from Virginia ? How was it received ? What famous body now met ? 
How did it get its name ? What position did it take about the rights of the 
colonies? What would have been the result if the king had accepted? 
What appeals were sent to England? Who were called tories? whigs? 

VIII. What was Gage expected to do in Massachusetts? What; 
was his success? What was the object of the expedition to Concord? 
How were the country people aroused ? Describe the skirmish at Lexing- ; 
ton. What happened when the British reached Concord? Describe 



THE CAUSES OF THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION 155 

their retreat. When did the siege of Boston begin? Describe the battle 
of Bunker Hill. What effect did it have on the Americans? 

IX. Describe the work of the second continental congress. Why 
was another appeal made to the king? Who was appointed to command 
the continental army? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

George III, in his Relation to the Colonies ; The Services of Patrick 
Henry ; The Services of James Otis ; The Reception of the Stamp Act ; 
Paul Revere's Ride ; William Pitt and the Attempts to Tax the Colonies ; 
The Battle of Bunker Hill. 



CHAPTER XII 
THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR 

When George III Avas told that the petition of the second 
continental congress was in London, he refused to receive it. 
other harsh When he heard of the battle of Bunker Hill, he pro- 
measures claimed the colonists rebels, and parliament closed 
all the American ports. This was additional evidence that the 
Americans must yield to the will of the king or fight. They had 
no idea of submitting. Jefferson said: "I will cease to exist 
before I will yield to a connection on such terms as the British 
parliament proposes." 

In May, 1776, the continental congress was again in session in 
Philadelphia. Very few of the members desired to make any 
states further appeal to Great Britain. The one word that 

created ^yas in every mind was independence, but every one 

dreaded to declare for it. To do so was to take the step from which 
there was no withdrawal. While congress thus hesitated, North 
Carolina, a colony noted for its democratic spirit, took the lead 
and passed resolutions instructing her delegates at Philadelphia 
to vote for independence. Other colonies took the same step, 
and on May 15 congress advised the colonies to change them- 
selves into states. 

Three weeks later it appointed a committee to prepare resolu- 
Thedec- tions declaring the thirteen states free and independ- 
laration of ent. The Committee reported the noble declaration 
independ- which we have preserved as one of our most precious 
documents, and it was passed on July 4. It was 
written by Thomas Jefferson, of Virginia, but the Reading ideas 

156 




'^'fl^f-^'jilmF^ ■ 



Congress voting independence, July 4, 1776 

From the original painting by Robert Edge Pine and Edward Savage, belonging to the 

Historical Society of Pennsylvania. 



158 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

in it were those of all the members of the congress. When 
it was adopted, the bells of the town rang out joyously; and 
from town to town, from colony to colony, the glad news was 
carried. 

The thirteen states could not win the war that was now well 
begun if they acted separately ; and congress took steps to form 
How much them into a united government. At once two sides 
union? appeared. Some people thought that the newly 

made states should give up enough of their powers to make a 

^ 'T^HIS BILL entitles the Bearer tot) 

A receive 57'W6' 'jM-'9'y d]uniSX ^i^PrJ <l 

2)0il^e^^^, or the Value thereof $ 

in ^/yCd or Si^cr^ according to the Refo- f* 

Wions of the <B0<lH'q<ji.eS6\ held at V 

^•7-^4^/J?«, j^ loth^f (^-jy, 1775. ^ 





Continental paper money 

central government that could compel the people of the states 
to pay taxes and furnish the troops that were needed. Others 
thought that it was sufficient to have the states agree to act to- 
gether in congress, and they said that the call of congress for money 
and soldiers would be enough to secure all the funds and troops 
that would be needed. They were attached to the state govern- 
ments, and believed that if the central government were given 
great power, the result would be to break down the power of the 
state. The small states were especially strong in this opinion ; m 
for they thought that in a strong union they would be at the mercy fl 
of the large states. The time was so critical that nobody dared 



i 



THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR 159 

offend a small state, and so all thought of a strong central govern- 
ment at that time was given up. 

The result was the adoption of a plan of union known as the 
articles of confederation. It left each state free to manage its 
own affairs. Congress was to call on the states for Articles of 
troops and money for the common cause, but it could confedera- 
do nothing if the call was not obeyed. It happened *'°° 
that the states often refused to give what was asked, and some- 
times the central government was on the point of breaking up for 
lack of money to support an army. 

Let us now turn to the military side of the revolution. When 
the people became convinced in the spring that war was certain 
to come, the siege of Boston had been going on through- Evacuation 
out the winter. Washington, who commanded the °^ Boston 
Americans, was so vigilant that the British did not dare show 
themselves outside of their fortifications. During winter he 
secured a supply of cannon and ammunition from the forts of 
upper New York, which Ethan Allen had captured, Forts 
Ticonderoga and Crown Point. These heavy guns were taken to 
Washington's camp on sleds, and mounted on Dorchester Heights, 
overlooking Boston. The British were now in great danger. Not 
only their ships in the harbor, but they themselves could be de- 
stroyed if the Americans opened fire. They offered to go away 
if they were not attacked from these frowning heights. So it 
happened that on March 17, 1776, the British sailed out of Boston 
harbor, they and a thousand loyalists who either did not wish, 
or did not dare, to remain in the town when it passed under the 
control of the whigs. 

While the siege of Boston went on, important matters came up 
in the South. In North Carolina were many loyalists, and the 
governor, who had been driven out by the patriots, Battle of 
reported that if a British fleet appeared off the coast* Moore's 
they would rise, overthrow the whigs, and restore the "® 
king's authority. A fleet accordingly went forth, while officers 



160 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



well provided with gold appeared in the interior, calling on loyal 
men to rally to the standard of the king. A great many came out 
and were formed into regiments. The meeting place was Cross 
Creek, now Fayetteville, on the Cape Fear River. February 18, 
1776, they set out, 1600 strong, for the mouth of the river, 
where they thought a fleet was waiting. These movements 
alarmed the whigs, who did all they could to call out their friends. 
February 27 they met the tories at Moore's Creek Bridge and 
delivered a stinging defeat, although the whigs numbered only 
a thousand. For a time this battle ended the hope that the North 
Carolina loyalists would aid England in regaining control in the 
South. Later in the war the tories became very active in the two 
Carolinas and Georgia. 

When the British fleet reached the mouth of the Cape Fear 
River the commander heard of the fight at Moore's Creek. He 
Charleston proceeded to Charleston, South Carolina, thinking he 
attacked would easily take the town. He laughed at the forts 
built to guard the entrance of the harbor. Against one of them. 



SIEGE OF 

CHARLESTON 




Fort Moultrie, the British ships opened fire, June 28, expecting 
to reduce it with a few broadsides. But the South Carolinians 
had constructed its walls of green palmetto logs, into which the 



THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR 



161 



cannon shot sunk without doing serious damage. On the other 
hand, the guns of the forts were aimed with deadly effect ; and 
after a hard battle one of the ships was sunk and the rest were so 
much damaged that they were glad to withdraw from the fight. 
They returned northward a few days later, and the whole South 
remained in the hands of the patriots. 

The next attack of the British was made against New York. 
Washington foresaw that it would come, and moved his army from 
Boston to meet it. His enemy was very strong, and New York 
landed near what is now the popular summer resort attacked 
of Coney Island. Washington placed a large part of his army 
across the road to 
New York along a 
crest of hills two 
miles east of Brook- 
lyn Ferry. The 
British were com- 
manded by General 
Howe, who acted 
with caution ; for 
he had learned to 
respect the ability 
of the American 
commander. The 
battle which fol- 
lowed was a victory 
for Howe, who pushed on toward Brooklyn. Washington knew 
that if the enemy placed cannon on Brooklj^n Heights over- 
looking the town of New York, the Americans must withdraw, 
and he made every effort to hold the heights. Then Howe 
played a clever trick. He threw his o^vn troops around the 
Americans on the heights and made ready to bring his fleet up the 
river between the heights and Manhattan Island. It seemed 
that the Americans were to be surrounded on land and water and 




162 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

forced to surrender. If their army was taken, it was not likely 
that another could be got together to oppose the British. 
Escape from But Washington proved more clever than Howe. He 
Brooklyn gaw his danger, and used a lucky opportunity to es- 
cape. A sudden storm came up, followed by a heavy fog. It 
kept the British fleet from moving up the river, while Washington 
by hard efforts gathered every boat he could find and moved his 
troops across East River so noiselessly that he was in safety before 
the British knew Avhat he was doing. 

Howe was disappointed, but he followed Washington across 
the river and seemed about to close in around him in the lower 
Washington P^rt of Manhattan Island. Again the American 
marches commander acted quickly, and withdrew from the 
northward i^ap. As the British occupied New York the Ameri- 
cans marched northward. The two armies fought a sharp battle 
at Harlem, near where Columbia University now stands, and 
another at White Plains, twenty-five miles farther north. In 
each case the Americans were defeated, l^ut they withdrew in good 
order. It was at this time that Nathan Hale, a Connecticut 
schoolmaster, was shot as a spy. He had volunteered to go into 
New York to obtain information, Avas captured, admitted that he 
was a patriot, and was sentenced to be shot. His last words were : 
"I only regret that I have but one life to lose for my country." 

Washington now found that he was being forced away from 
New York, and he crossed into New Jersey so as to be in a position 
Washington to threaten the British in New York. Two forts had 
in retreat been built on the Hudson, Forts Washington and 
Lee. Howe took both, seizing the first before the garrison of 
2600 men escaped. In the second he took a large quantity 
of supplies. The Americans were discouraged, and moved 
southward in New Jersey. Howe thought them beaten, and 
returned to the city, leaving General Cornwallis to follow Washing- 
ton and capture the last of the army. Cornwallis was a good 
soldier, but Washington was better, and won in the race across 



THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR 



163 



New Jersey. At last he crossed the Delaware River, secured the 
boats for many miles, and had an opportunity to restore the 
strength and spirits of his men. 

Cornwallis felt that his task was done, and placed his troops 
at various towns to overawe the country people. A force was 
at Trenton, 1400 strong. Washington, on the opposite Battle of 
side of the river from Trenton, planned a bold blow. On Trenton 
Christmas night, while the enemy were still under the effects of 





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Washington crossing the Delaware 

their holiday carouse, he crossed the river, filled with floating 
ice, and fell unexpectedly on the British camp in the early 
morning. His enemy were surrounded, and forced to a fight in 
which their commander was killed and a thousand men were 
captured and carried into Pennsylvania. 

The spirits of the Americans rose at once, and their commander 
recrossed the river to Trenton. Cornwallis called up Battle of 
his reenf or cements to crush him. At nightfall on Princeton 
January 2, 1777, he lay in front of the small American army, 



164 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERLCAN HISTORY 



confident that he would win a great victory with the coming 
of dawn. But Washington again outwitted him. Leaving his 
camp fires burning brightly, he slipped away in the night and took 
the road to the north. At Princeton in the early morning he met 
a strong body of troops coming up to help Cornwallis, and defeated 
them in a quick encounter. Cornwallis heard the guns just as he 
learned that no army was before him. He followed as fast as he 




1777 \-EllslislU<UJJl y^i// I 

^-~. ^JfonnMiutli C. H. « , ") 



L 1 I iNTIC 
.V 

,.. N.r. 



could go, but Washington moved off into northern New Jersey. 
The British did not dare attack him in a winter campaign, nor 
would they divide their army in garrisons throughout the state. 
They drew back to the neighborhood of New York, and the rest 
of the winter passed in quiet. At the end of the campaign of 1776 
the British held New York and Newport in Rhode Island, and 
the Americans held the rest of the countrv. 



THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR 165 

Early in 1777 the British made plans for a great campaign. 
The main object was to gain the Hudson River from New York 
to the source and to cut off New England from the 
rest of the states. Three large expeditions were to 
try to carry out this plan. One was to start from Montreal and 
proceed by Lake Champlain and Lake George. Over it was placed 
General Burgoyne. Another was to start at Oswego, on Lake 
Ontario, and march through the Mohawk valley. It was com- 
manded by General St. Leger. A third was the army under 
Howe, which was to move up the Hudson from New York. It 
was expected that all the forces would meet near Albany. The 
plan was made in England, and orders were sent promptly to 
Burgoyne and St. Leger. By some mistake they were not sent 
to Howe, who, having no directions as to what he should do during 
1777, thought he might move as he saw best. He chose to move 
against Philadelphia, where the continental congress was in ses- 
sion. He thought it would have a good effect for the British if he 
could seize the capital of the Americans. His failure to act with 
the other two expeditions was fatal to their success. 

Howe decided to reach Philadelphia by water. He embarked 
on two hundred and fifty ships and sailed down the coast. Wash- 
ington was vigilant and moved southward rapidly. Battle of 
Howe thought he would outwit him by landing at the Brandywine 
head of Chesapeake Bay and not on the shore of the Delaware 
Bay, as one would naturally expect. He put his army ashore as he 
planned, but he had not gone far on the road to Philadelphia 
before he found Washington in front of him at Brandywine Creek. 
Howe had a large number of troops, and his men were regulars, 
while most of the Americans were raw militia. Nevertheless, the 
Americans fought hard until nightfall, and withdrew in good order. 
Each side lost about 1000 men ; but the British moved into 
Philadelphia without further opposition. 

They were delighted to see, the continental congress in utter 
flight, and Howe became so confident that he left a portion of his 



166 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



army exposed at Germantown, seven miles from Philadelphia. 
Washington, hovering near, saw his opportunity, and threw 
Battle of himself on these troops with all his force. He carried 
German- everything before him, driving back the British in 
town flight. When all seemed won, a small body of British 

took refuge in a stone house and held off the Americans until some 




I 



of the retreating regiments could be turned about. These resisted 
until Howe could send other troops from the city. Thus Washing- 
ton lost again ; but he had nearly won the victory, and he had 
taught Howe to be careful. It was evident to the British generals 
that they could not afford to station men in exposed positions, 
and although Howe remained in Philadelphia for a year, he was too 
prudent to go far into the surrounding country. By this means 
rural Pennsylvania escaped the visits of the British. During 



THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR 



167 



the winter the American army was encamped at Valley Forge, 
where it could keep a good eye on the British. The At Valley 
men suffered much from lack of clothing and food, but Forge 
their trust in Washington did not falter. 

While these things happened in Pennsylvania Burgoyne's 
campaign was in progress in the North. He marched in June 
with 7300 men and was soon before Fort Ticonderoga, xhe expedi- 
at the head of Lake George. The garrison fell back tion from 
rather than risk a siege. The militia of New England ^^°^^* 
and New York now swarmed into the northern forest to meet 
him. They felled trees across 
the roads, and cut off any 
small bodies of men that got 
separated from the army. 
They would not risk a deci- 
sive battle, and Burgoync 
floundered along very slowly 
as far as the headwaters of 
the Hudson. His men con- 
sumed their rations more 
rapidly than wagons could 
bring them up from Lake 
George. 

In despair he sent out five hundred German troops to gather 
supplies in Vermont, where he supposed there were many loyalists. 
It was a very unfriendly reception the Vermonters Battle of 
gave them. They assembled under Colonel John Bennington 
Stark, in number eight hundred, and met the Germans at Benning- 
ton, killing or capturing nearly all of them. A second body of 
British troops came up to reenforce the first, and these were also 
beaten by Stark and his Vermonters. The total British loss was 
eight hundred. 

The news from Bennington was a sad blow for Burgoyne. He 
learned within a few days of another misfortune which was equally 




Washington's headquarters at Valley Forge 



168 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



unfortunate. St. 





(K 



'^^ 



riiigton 



Leger had been met at Oriskany by a band 
of German settlers and defeated after a 
Battle of severe battle. He hesitated for 
Oriskany ^ few days, but when he learned 
that 2000 men under Benedict Arnold were 
marching against him, he retreated to the 
safety of his ships at Oswego. 

Burgoyne was now in a critical position. 
His army was reduced to 5000 men with- 
Surrenderof out adequate supplies. News 
Burgoyne came that Howe was in Phila- 
delphia, and not, as Burgoyne supposed, 
approaching Albany. Before him lay an 
army of more than 10,000 which daily 
grew in numbers. He dared not retreat 
before it. He made two hard efforts to 
break through and scatter his opponents, 
but both were failures. Then he accepted 
the inevitable, and at Saratoga on October 
17, 1777, he surrendered his entire army. 
It was agreed that the soldiers should be sent 
to Boston and embarked for England, not 
to serve again in America during the war. 

The defeat of Burgoyne was important 
in several ways. It was a great thing to 
break up England's plan for 
cutting off New England from 
the rest of the states ; but it was a still 
greater thing to overpower and take 
prisoners an army as large as Burgoyne's. 
The Americans were filled with hope and 
courage, and gloom hung over the British 
camps. 

The greatest impression, however, was 



Effects 



THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR 169 

in France, where the progress of the revolution had been watched 
closely. France remembered the seven years' war and was pleased 
to see England humiliated. She began to give help Help from 
secretly, and the king only awaited some great victory to France 
come out openly for the United States. The surrender of Burgoyne 
was the deciding event. All Paris rejoiced, and early in 1778 the 
king made two treaties, one recognizing the independence of the 
American states and making a defensive alliance with them, and 
the other regulating commerce between the two nations. France 
hoped that the states would in the future buy from French mer- 
chants the supplies they had previously obtained in England. 

England was now thoroughly alarmed lest she lose her colonies, 
and even stubborn George III was willing to yield something. 
Conmiissioners were appointed to go to America with King 
offers of compromise. If the Americans would sub- George's 
mit, and throw over France, their new friend,'they might, ° 
said the commissioners, have pardon for all they had done; and' 
all the reforms they had asked for in 1775-1776 would be granted. 
The offer came too late. Independence seemed certain, and no 
state was willing to give up the hope of securing it. 

The year 1778 was a quiet one. England wished to strike a 
blow against France in the West Indies and left the Americans 
in comparative peace. She decided that it was risky Battle of 
to try to defend both Philadelphia and New York and Monmouth 
ordered that the former place be given up. Clinton, who was now 
in chief command, obeyed the order, marching overland with his 
army through New Jersey. Washington followed him closely, anx- 
iously watching for an opportunity to attack. The right moment 
came when the British lay at Monmouth, New Jersey. Washing- 
ton prepared to charge vigorously and gave General Charles Lee 
the honor of leading the attack. Lee, who was secretly a traitor, 
fell back before the enemy. By the greatest efforts Washington 
checked the retreat of his own men and saved his army from 
defeat. Lee was tried by a court-martial and suspended from the 



170 THE PLAIN STORY OP AMERICAN HISTORY 

army for a year. He was a British officer who early took the side 
of the Americans in order to get a high command. He was 
jealous of Washington and intrigued to get the chief position. 
Letters discovered in later times have made his treachery certain. 

A more noted act of treason occurred two years after the battle 
of Monmouth ; that is, in 1780. Benedict Arnold was one of the 
Arnolds bravest generals in the patriot army. He made a 
treason glorious fight in Canada in 1775 and 1776, trying 

to take Quebec and beating off an attempt to invade upper New 
York. He was one of the boldest of those who faced Burgoyne, 
and he lost a leg in the campaign. In 1780 he was in command of 
West Point, a strong fortress built to command the Hudson. He 
had been badly treated by congress and was in debt. Major 
Andre, Clinton's adjutant, became his correspondenr and per- 
suaded him to desert the American cause and surrender West 
Point, offering for his treachery the position of brigadier-general 
in the British army and a large sum of money. In September 
Andre came up the Hudson and had a conference with Arnold. 
All arrangements were made for handing over the fort, and Andre 
started to ride down the river road to New York. Near Tarry- 
town he was arrested, taken to an American post, and after trial 
hanged as a spy. Arnold learned of the arrest and knew he would 
be implicated. He jumped into a boat and escaped to a British 
ship, where he received the price of his crime. West Point, how- 
ever, was saved from Clinton's grasp. Arnold served his new 
masters well, but in his old age he had much reason to regret that 
he had deserted his country. It is said that just before he died 
he called for his old American uniform, saying, "May God forgive 
me for ever putting on any other." 

The battle of Monmouth was the last important action in 

Georgia and the North. The British had concluded to try in an- 

South other field. There were many tories in the Carolinas 

^^^^°* and Georgia, and it was believed that they would come 

to the help of the king if a royal army was in that section. The 



THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR 171 

rest of the war was devoted to an attempt to conquer this region. 
First, Savannah was seized, December, 1778, and the interior of 
Georgia overrun. The next year South CaroHna was invaded. 
The American general unwisely allowed himself to be shut up in 
Charleston, where in 1780 he surrendered with 5000 men. South 
Carolina was now without defenders and fell a victim of the en- 
emy's hatred. Small British columns rode against whatever group 
of the people was armed in self-defense. The governor of the 
state fled because he had no government to administer, and Gen- 
eral Cornwallis, who commanded the British, had the two states 
at his mercy. 

Congress sent General Gates to gather what troops he could 
and drive out the enemy. He was a rash and vain man and was 
defeated by Cornwallis in the battle of Camden. Gates rode so 
rapidly from the field that his own army thought him a coward. 
He was succeeded by General Nathanael Greene, a general whom 
Washington himself selected. Greene was expected to keep 
Cornwallis from overrunning North Carolina and if possible drive 
him from South Carolina. To do this he had the broken handful 
of troops left from Gates's defeated army, with a few newly arrived 
men, in all 2300. He could also call out the militia of the states 
in which he was operating. 

Two months before he arrived, the militia of North Carolina 
and Virginia won a brilliant victory, which showed that they 
could be depended on. Cornwallis sent Major Fergu- Battle of 
son into the country west of Charlotte, North Carolina, King's 
to collect tory recruits. To the whigs of the region ^o"*!**'" 
this was a challenge, and they gathered to the number of 1800 to 
defeat Ferguson. They pursued him so closely that he took refuge 
on King's Mountain, a hill most of which lies in South Carolina. 
The whigs surrounded the hill and charged up its slope so vigor- 
ously that Ferguson and his men were glad to shield themselves 
on its crest behind any stone or tree that was found there. Finally 
the leader with two hundred of his men was shot, and the rest, 



172 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 




Cape Lookout 



Campaign in the South, 1778-1781 



THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR 



173 



seven hundred in number, became prisoners of war. This vic- 
tory, won by the men of western counties of North CaroHna, Vir- 
ginia, and South Carohna, October 7, 1780, without help from the 
state or continental government, caused Cornwallis to fall back 
into South Carolina. 

He was ready to move again early in 1781. He sent Colonel 
Tarleton with more than 1000 troopers to attack General Morgan, 
whom Greene had placed where he could watch the Morgan at 
British. Morgan with eight hundred men did not Cowpens 
hesitate to fight Tarleton at Cowpens, January 17. He was an 
excellent soldier and his men 
had great confidence in him. 
They received the British with 
a withering fire, and in a short 
engagement killed, wounded, 
and captured seven hundred 
and eighty-four of them. 
Tarleton with the rest was 
driven from the field. Mor- 
gan's army was composed of 
frontiersmen, all excellent 
marksmen. 

Cornwallis was very angry 
and flew at Morgan with his 
superior army. The American 
general was too good a soldier 
to be caught. He retreated rapidly into North Carolina, with the 
British following as fast as they could. The chase cornwallis 
was continued for many days. Greene also moved foiled in 
rapidly northward and was at last able to unite with his ^o^^'^ 
lieutenant and get safely into the southern part of 
Virginia, while the British army remained in North Carolina, calling 
the tories to its standard. Greene received reinforcements and 
gave his tired troops a rest. Then he reentered North Carolina 




General Morgan 



174 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



and fought a severe battle with CornwalHs at Guilford Court- 
house, March 15, 1781. Both armies suffered heavily, and at 
nightfall Greene drew off, leaving his foe on the battle field. 
CornwalHs sent out a proclamation in which he claimed the 
victory, but a few days later he fell back to Wilmington, on the 
seacoast. He had lost so many men and used up so much am- 
munition that he dared 
not sta}^ in the interior 
with so vigilant an op- 
ponent as Greene before 
him. Practically all North 
Carolina remained in the 
hands of the Americans. 

Greene now returned to 
South Carolina and at- 
Greene's tacked the vari- 

success in OUS posts the 

South British had for- 

Carolina j.-j2 i xi i 

tined through- 
out the state. One after 
the other was taken, thus 
forcing the garrisons to 
fall back to the seacoast. 
Several battles were fought 
in this process, in both 
South Carolina and Geor- 
gia. At the end of the 
year 1781 the British held only Charleston and Savannah in the 
two southernmost states. 

Meanwhile, CornwalHs had decided to give up the hope of 
conquering North Carolina. In April he left Wilmington and 
marched to Virginia, where Lafayette commanded the Americans. 
He met no serious resistance, and for three months went 
where he pleased. At length he took position at Yorktown 




General Greene 



THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR 



175 



on the south bank of the York River, at that point a broad 
stream. 

When Washington heard of this, he was before New York, watch- 
ing Chnton. Rochambeau, with a fine army of French soldiers, 
was at Newport, and a French fleet was at hand. Yorktown 
Washington quickly formed a plan to trap the ^^^"^ 
British at Yorktown. First, he asked the French fleet to blockade 
Chesapeake Bay in order to keep a British fleet away. Next 
he brought Rochambeau to 



New York so as to make 
Clinton think that place was 
to be attacked. Then he sud- 
denly departed with the united 
army, 6000 strong, for Virginia. 
Other forces joined him, and 
early in September he closed 
in around Cornwallis with a 
regular siege attack. October 
19 Yorktown was taken and 
the British army of 7500 men 
was made prisoners. 

The American revolution had 
now been in progress more than 




five years, and Great Britain 
held of her former colonies only the seaports of Savannah, 
Charleston, Wilmington, and New York; and these a treaty of 
she held because of her naval strength. In the course P^ace 
of these years two of her armies had been taken captive and a 
vast amount of money had been spent. The people of England 
saw that America was no nearer submission than at the beginning 
of the struggle. They were tired of the war, and March 15, 1782, 
parliament passed a bill to make peace. Commissioners were 
appointed by each side ; they met in Paris and prepared a 
treaty, which was finally ratified September 3, 1783. After the 



176 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



surrender of Cornvvallis there was no more serious fighting in 
America. 

The terms of the treaty of peace were as follows : 1. The United 
States should be recognized as free and independent. 2. The 
country should have its former outer limits, and the 
Mississippi and the Great Lakes should be the bound- 
aries on the west and the northwest. 3. The navigation of the 
Mississippi should be open to both the United States and Great 



The terms 




AM ERICAN FORC ES 



Britain. Had France been left to fix the boundary she would 
have given us much less of the western region. She was very 
friendly to Spain and that country owned Louisiana and did not 
wish the strong American republic to come near to its boundaries. 
Two facts are worth remembering about the revolutionary war. 
One is that we should never have won it but for the help we got 
Two im- from France. She acted undoubtedly from her dislike 
portant facts for England, but she treated us generously, sending us 
men and money and only asking in return that we remain her 



THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR 177 

friend. The other fact is that the great distances they must 
travel through a thinly settled country weakened the British 
armies quite as much as the actual fighting of the Americans. 
It was in this way that Burgoyne was defeated and Cornwallis 
forced to fall back after he had won the day at Guilford Court- 
house. 

The Americans began the war with much enthusiasm, but 
after the first year their ardor cooled. It was then hard to keep 
the army up to its full numbers, and the states became a small 
very slow in voting money to pay expenses. When army 
Washington gathered all the troops he could muster to surround 
Cornwallis at Yorktown, he had what was a vast army for the 
revolution. It contained 16,000 men, 7500 of whom were French- 
men. If all America had been united to carry on the war, it should 
have been easy to have armies much larger than this. 

The tories were very numerous in some parts of the country. 
They were conscientiously opposed to the whigs, whom they 
considered only an ambitious group of men who wished Tories and 
to acquire influence. The whigs controlled the state British 
legislatures and retaliated on the tories, confiscating 
their property and causing them great distress. They also passed 
laws making it difficult for British merchants to collect debts 
due them at the beginning of the war. When the treaty of peace 
was made, the British insisted that congress should order the 
property of the tories restored and that the laws against the 
collection of debts owed to British subjects should be repealed. 
It was impossible for congress to order a state to do anything ; 
but it was agreed that congress would recommend that the laws 
complained of should be annulled. The recommendation was 
promptly made, but most of the states paid no attention to it. 
This caused disappointment in England, where it was generally 
believed that the Americans had not kept faith. 

We must not turn from the story of the revolution without 
knowing how the rich country north of the Ohio River was con- 



178 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



quered. Virginia claimed most of this region, but it was occupied 
by British posts at the beginning of the war. In 1778 George 
George Rogers Clark marched boldly into it with about two 

Rogers hundred soldiers sent out by the state of Virginia. 

Clark jjg captured the important settlements of Kaskaskia, 

Vincennes and Cahokia. They were weakly defended, and Clark's 
greatest trials were to overcome the difficulties of a long march 

through a wide wilderness. 
The British commander at 
Detroit with a considerable 
body of troops retook Vin- 
cennes, and then, feeling safe 
in the winter, sent away all 
his men but eighty. Clark 
heard of this misfortune and 
lost no time in recovering what 
was lost. He marched nine- 
teen days over the prairies, 
wading much of the distance 
through icy water, and forced 
the British governor to sur- 
render. That officer, Hamil- 
ton by name, was popularly | 
called the "Hair Buyer" be- • 
cause he had paid Indians for 
the scalps of white settlers. He was much hated on the western 
frontier, and a great outburst of joy came from that section when 
Clark came home with the "Hair Buyer" a prisoner. From that 
time the northwest remained in American hands. 

Another thing which must not be omitted from the story of 
the revolution is the career of John Paul Jones, the first hero 
John Paul of the American navy. He entered the navy in 1775 
Jones and quickly became a captain. He was in France soon 

after that countrj^ decided to help the Americans. With much 




George Rogers Clark 



THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR 



179 



difficulty he got command of a squadron of four small ships and 
boldly sailed around the northern part of Scotland, coming down 
on the eastern coast. He had destroyed many British ships, and 
the royal navy was anxiously looking for him. Near Hull he en- 
countered the Sera-pis, 
a larger ship than the 
Bonhomme Richard, his 
best vessel, and joined 
in a furious battle. 
Finding that his can- 
non were bad, he laid 
his ship by the side of 
his opponent, lashed his 
spars to those of the 
Serapis, and fought 
desperately with mus- 
kets and bombs. At 
the end of two hours 
the British ship was on 
fire and struck her 
colors. The Bonhomme 
Richard was so badly 
damaged that she sank, 
and Jones went back 
to France in the cap- 
tured Serapis, accom- 
panied by a smaller vessel which one of his squadron had taken 
while the commander was fighting. John Paul Jones set the 
standard for bravery and persistence in the American navy. 




John Paul Jones 



QUESTIONS 

I. How did George III treat the petition of the second continental con- 
gress? What steps were taken in England after the battle of Bunker 
Hill? How did Jefferson express the purpose of the colonies? 



180 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

II. Why did congress hesitate to declare independence? Which 
colony took the first step? What advice was given on May 15? De- 
scribe the adoption of the declaration of independence. Who were the 
loyaUsts? the whigs? How did the loyaUsts justify their position? 

III. How did congress prepare a plan of union? What prevented the 
formation of a strong union? Describe the adoption of the articles of 
confederation. What did they say about raising money and armies? 
How did they affect the power of the states? Did they satisfy all classes? 

IV. How did Washington maintain the siege of Boston? How did 
he get heavy guns? For what purpose did he use them? Describe the 
departure of the British. 

V. What plans were made to reestabhsh British authority in North 
Carolina? Describe, the campaign of Moore's Creek. To what place 
did the British then turn their attention ? Describe the attack on Charles- 
ton ? How was the town saved ? 

VI. From what region did Howe attack New York? Describe his 
first battle. How did Washington twice elude Howe? What two battles 
were fought when Washington withdrew from the town ? Relate the story 
of Nathan Hale. 

VII. Why did Washington move into New Jersey? What two forts 
were lost? Describe his retreat to the Delaware. How did he escape 
CornwalUs? Describe the battles of Trenton and Princeton. What 
effect did they have on the Americans? What was the effect on the 
British occupation of New Jersey ? What parts of the continent did the 
British hold at the close of the year 1776? 

VIII. What wide campaign was planned for the year 1777 ? Why did 
Howe act on a plan of his own? Describe his expedition to Philadelphia. 
What was the result of the battle of Brandywine ? Describe the battle of 
Germantown. What kept the British from ravaging Pennsylvania? 
Describe the condition at Valley Forge. 

IX. Describe Burgoyne's march southward. How was he opposed? 
Describe the expedition to Bennington. How did the expedition of St. 
Leger fail? In what respects was Burgoyne's position critical? How 
did he try to break through the American Unes ? What were the terms of 
his surrender? What effects did it have on our relations with France? 
How had France given aid to America before Burgoyne's defeat? De- 
scribe the treaties now made. What offers did she make to the Americans ? 

X. Why was the war not pressed early in 1778? Why was Philadel- 
phia given up? Describe the battle of Monmouth. How did Lee prove 
wanting? What was the early career of Arnold? Explain the origin 
and end of his treason. What was the story of Andre? 



THE REVOLUTIONARY WAR 181 

XL To what field did Great Britain turn her attention in the latter 
part of 1778 ? On what was her hope based in the new field ? Describe 
the results in Georgia and South Carolina. What became of the regular 
government in South Carolina? Describe Gates's attempt to defend 
South Carolina. What were Greene's resources? Why was Ferguson 
sent to North Carolina ? What men determined to drive him out ? De- 
scribe the battle of King's Mountain. 

XIL Describe the battle of Cowpens. Describe the chase across 
North Carohna. Describe the battle of Guilford Courthouse. What 
were its effects on the campaign of Cornwallis? Describe Greene's 
further campaign in South Carohna. In what direction did Cornwallis 
march from Wilmington? Describe his early campaign in Virginia. 
In what place did he take his stand ? What plan did Washington make ? 
Tell how it was put into execution. 

XIII. What had Great Britain gained by five years of fighting? 
When and where was the treaty of peace made ? What were the terms ? 
How would France have limited the boundaries? What two important 
advantages favored the Americans ? What conclusion do you draw from 
the size of the American armies ? How were the tories treated during the 
war? What was said in the treaty of peace about the tories? the British 
debts? 

XIV. Describe the conquest of the Northwest by George Rogers 
Clark. Who was the "Hair Buyer"? Why was he hated? What part 
did the navy take in the revolution? Describe the career of John Paul 
Jones. What has been his influence on the navy? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Adoption of the Declaration of Independence ; The Articles of 
Confederation ; Ethan Allen ; Israel Putnam's Exploits ; The Attack 
on Fort Moultrie ; The Treatment of the Loyalists ; The Career of Nathan 
Hale ; The Trials of the Continental Army ; Our Aid from France ; The 
Defeat of Burgoyne ; Making the Treaty of Peace ; The Victories of George 
Rogers Clark ; The Cruise of the Bonhomme Richard. 



CHAPTER XIII 
REMODELING THE GOVERNMENT 

The people of the United States were happy to dismiss their 
armies and turn their attention to the affairs of peace, which 
A state of were in great need of reform. In three fields there was 
confusion confusion. 1. The continental congress had borrowed 
a large amount of money at home and abroad, and it was necessary 
to provide for its payment. 2. Since the states paid no heed to the 
calls of congress for money, it was necessary to devise some means 
by which the general government could collect the money it 
needed. No government can be respected that does not have 
the right to collect taxes. 3. There was much jealousy between 
the merchants and the country people. In this chapter we 
must discuss these three states of confusion and learn how the 
good sense of the people gradually established order. 

The revolutionary debt was of two kinds, bonds and continental 
money. The bonds were promises to pay certain sums at some 
future time with interest at a specified rate. They 
were in writing, and were signed by the high officers of 
the government. For example, a bond might be for SI 000, payable 
in twenty j^ears with interest at six per cent. Such a bond would 
be signed and offered for sale. It was unusual for it to bring face 
value. If it were to sell for only $ 600 it meant that interest was 
really ten per cent. These bonds had been sold in Europe, some 
to the French government, some to Spain, who at first was willing 
to help the colonies revolt from England, and some to bankers in 
Holland. The Americans were especially anxious to pay their 
interest on their foreign debt, for it was damaging to their reputa- 

182 



REMODELING THE GOVERNMENT 183 

tion to let it go unpaid. Other bonds were sold to people who 
lived in America. When the war ended, we owed nearly $8,000,000 
in Europe and about $35,000,000 at home. 

Another kind of debt was paper money, \vhich was in reality 
the government's promises to pay sums of money to the holders 
of the bills, when they should present the same at the Continental 
treasury. A great quantity was issued during the money 
war, so much that no one believed that it could be paid. It gradu- 
ally fell in value, until late in the war it took one hundred dollars of 
this money to purchase as much as one silver dollar would pur- 
chase. "Not worth a continental" was a current phrase, and re- 
ferred to the continental money. A man in Philadelphia pasted 
it over his dog and led him along the streets, to the amusement of 
the onlookers. Some of this money was redeemed at the rate 
of forty to. one, and some was never redeemed. 

A country as great and as rich as ours could easily have paid 
this debt if there had been a proper means of collecting such 
taxes as the people were able to pay. The difficulty was The tax- 
that in 1783 congress had no right to levy taxes on indi- levying 
viduals. If it called on a state to pay its part and the P"^®"^ 
state refused, there was no way of making the state pay. To force 
a state to pay meant civil war, and no states would help congress 
in a war on the other states. If congress had the right to call 
on the individual and the individual refused, he could easily be 
made to pay. Many men saw that it was necessary to give con- 
gress the power to lay taxes on citizens, and attempts were made 
to amend the articles of confederation so as to confer the power. 
But all these attempts failed. It was necessary for every state to 
consent to an amendment of the articles, and there was always 
at least one state that would object. 

There were several causes of the hostility between the country 
people and the trading class. In the first place, the class 
former were generally in debt to the traders, and they Jealousy 
wished to have the states issue paper money with which they could 



184 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

easily pay their debts. The merchants, on the other hand, ob- 
jected to paper money, and tried to defeat the demands for it. 
Another thing was that the merchants were wealthy and lived in 
fine houses, while the farmers were mostly poor and had to work 
hard. 

Still another was the dispute over the duties on imported goods. 
The merchants wished to abolish such duties between the states 
The coilec- ^-^d to make them uniform in all states when collected 
tionofim- on goods brought from .foreign countries. They real- 
port duties -^.g^^ ^j^g^^ ^Yie only way to secure these changes was to 
allow the general government to collect all the imports. As long 
as each state might collect what it chose there would be great 
differences between the rates. The cguntry people, on the other 
hand, liked the import tax. Since they did not actually pay it 
out of their pockets, they thought it was paid by the merchants. 
They forgot that the merchants always added the tax to the price 
of their goods, so that the people of the country were sure to pay 
their part of the duties on imports. The rural classes, therefore, 
were outspoken in opposition to the suggestion that congress 
should lay all import duties. They thought that such a course 
would deprive the state of a valuable source of revenue and in- 
crease the amount of the direct tax. The opposition between the 
two classes that grew up from the causes mentioned was very 
intense, especially in Massachusetts and Rhode Island. In the 
former of these states it led to the Shays rebellion, of 1787, which 
was not suppressed until the governor called out an army of four 
thousand men. 

The time was full of perils. We had won independence with 
the aid of France : should we now quarrel among ourselves ? And 
The peril of if quarreling began, was there not danger that some of 
dissension q^q states would put themselves under some foreign 
power rather than submit to the rest of the states? Occasionally 
one read in an English newspaper that the former colonies were 
quarreling among themselves and would soon come back one by 



REMODELING THE GOVERNMENT 185 

one for protection under the British flag. This state of affairs 
alarmed the wiser Americans, and they did all they could to get con- 
gress to mend matters. But congress moved slowly, and in spite 
of such men as Washington, Adams, Hamilton, and Madison, it 
would do nothing. 

A trivial incident set people thinking, and finally led to a new 
constitution. Maryland and Virginia were collecting differing 
duties on each side of the Potomac, and there was smuggling 
smuggling from one state into the other. Madison on the 
learned of this condition, and got the Virginia assembly °*°™^^ 
to invite Maryland to send delegates to meet Virginia delegates 
in a conference on the subject. As each state was losing money, 
it was the interest of eAch to make uniform rules and duties. 
When the delegates met, 1785, they found that any new duties 
Virginia and Maryland laid might not suit the states on their 
outer borders. This fact showed very clearly that duties ought 
to be the same throughout the states. The delegates from 
Virginia and Maryland, therefore, urged that a convention to 
take up the matter be called at Annapolis in 1786. Annapolis 
was selected because it was not a great trading town and was 
remote from New York, where the continental congress met. 
It was seen that the convention would be unpopular if it seemed 
to be under the influence of the trading class, and it was not 
thought that it should be in close contact with the continental 
congress. 

Nine of the states accepted the suggestion and the convention 
met, with delegates present from Virginia, Pennsylvania, Delaware, 
New Jersey, and New York. As soon as they assem- Annapolis 
bled the question was asked : " How can the regulations convention 
for uniform duties be enforced, even if we agree on a plan to levy 
such duties ? " It was evident that no plan, however good, would 
be worth trying unless there was a stronger general government. 
The convention, therefore, adjourned after calling on the states to 
send delegates to a constitutional convention in Philadelphia, in 



186 THi; PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

May, 1787. The states approved of the suggestion, and elected 
delegates. 

When the convention met, it took a bold course. It was called 

to amend the articles of confederation, but its first act was to 

throw aside the articles and make a new constitution 

outright. It did this without regard to the congress 

in session in New York. It trusted to the states for approval. 

The first important matter taken up in the convention was 
how to make the small states feel safe against the large states. 
Fir t nflict -^^^^de Island, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey, and 
in the con- Connecticut had long been suspicious of their great 
stitutionai neighbors, and they had insisted that the states should 

convention i i • • ^i £f • r j. t'u- 

have equal voice m the aiian's oi government, ihis 
would give a small state as much power as any other. To the large 
states it seemed absurd that the small state of Rhode Island should 
have as much voice in making laws and levying taxes as the great 
state of Virginia, then nearly twice as large as any other state. 
The delegates from the large states declared that they would 
never set up a government in which a great state put herself at the 
mercy of the small states, who by combining might defeat any 
measure which was for the good of the whole country. They 
added that rather than form a union on this basis, they would es- 
tablish one of themselves. They thought that if the small states 
found themselves left out for a time, they would see how weak 
they were, and be glad to come into the union on the terms laid 
down by the large states. On the other hand, the small states 
declared that they would never join such a union as their col- 
leagues proposed. 

This difference of opinion came up when the convention was 
considering the nature of the congress under th^- proposed con- 
The first stitution. It was first decided that congress should 
compromise ^g made up of two houses, a house of representatives 
and a senate. Next, the question was how the members of the 
house of representatives should be chosen. The large states 



REMODELING THE GOVERNMENT 187 

wished them selected according to population, so that a large state 
would have a larger number than a small state. Th'e small states 
wished an equal number from each state. After debate it was 
decided to select them according to population. By this decision 
the large states got control of this house. Then the convention 
took up the question of choosing the senators. There was again 
a warm debate. The delegates from the small states declared 
their people would never approve the constitution if the great 
states controlled both houses of congress. They suggested as a 
compromise that there should be two senators from each state, 
whatever its size. The large states spoke vigorously against the 
compromise, saying they would never submit to such a plan, 
since it would confer upon the small states the power to defeat 
any measure they disliked. But at the very last some of the 
delegates who had voted for the plan of the large states changed 
their attitude for the sake of harmony, and the compromise was 
adopted. The large states were very angry, but in a few days 
they became reconciled to their defeat, and the work of the conven- 
tion went on. Thus, it was decided that the representatives should 
be elected by the people and that the senators should be elected by 
the state legislatures. 

Another dispute arose when the convention came to decide 
whether or not slaves should be counted in allowing a state her 
representatives in congress. If slaves were counted, slave repre- 
a Southern state would have more representatives than sentation 
if they were not counted. The South argued that slaves were but 
laborers, and that it was as fair to count them as to count the 
laboring population of the North. But the North replied that 
slaves did not vote, that they were only property, and that it would 
be unfair to give the white men of the South the right to vote for 
themselves and for their slaves as well. Suppose, they said, that a 
state has as many slaves as whites, and suppose that, if the slaves 
are not counted, it has five representatives, elected by the whites. 
If the slaves are counted, it would have ten representatives, 



188 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



elected by the same number of white men. That would mean 
that a white man in that state would have twice as much voting 
strength as a white man in the North, where there were so few 
slaves that thev could have no influence. 




Signing- of the Constitution, September 17. 1787 

While this point was being discussed, a compromise was thought 
of. Suppose congress should wish to call on the states for direct 
The three- taxes, how should it decide how much each state should 
fifths com- raise? The natural answer was that a state that had 
promise one-tenth of the entire population should pay one- 
tenth of the amount that was to be raised from all. But should 
the state's slaves be counted as a part of its population? The 
Southern states objected, for it would make their parts of the whole 
sum larger. It was finally decided that in each case, that is, in 
deciding what should be a state's share of representation and what 
should be its share of the direct taxes, three-fifths of the slaves 



REMODELING THE GOVERNMENT 189 

should be counted. This compromise satisfied most people at that 
time, but when the slavery question became a prominent matter 
the three-fifths clause of the constitution was freely denounced 
by all who opposed the power of the slave states. 

Another question which alarmed the slaveholders was the 
foreign slave-trade. It became important when the convention 
was about to give congress the right to regulate navi- importation 
gation. The three states farthest south contained much of slaves 
unsettled land and lacked slaves to clear and cultivate it. They 
feared that congress, having the right to control navigation, would 
forbid the importation of slaves, and they declared that they would 
not accept a constitution which made such action possible. It 
was finally decided that the importation of slaves should not be 
forbidden before 1808, by which time, it was thought, every state 
would have as many as it needed. That being determined, the 
slaveholding states withdrew their objection, and congress was 
given full power over navigation. 

These three compromises removed the important difficulties 
before the convention, and the rest of its discussions were har- 
monious. Before adjournment it was voted to send the The conven- 
completed constitution to the states and to consider tion ad- 
it the law of the land when it was adopted by nine of ^°^^^^ 
the thirteen states. Most of the members of the convention ap- 
proved what had been done, and went home to persuade the 
people that the plan of government now laid before them was the 
best that could be prepared at that time. Some of the members 
objected to the constitution, and went home to try to defeat it. 
They thought it would be better to have the existing confusion 
than adopt a constitution which took so much power from the 
states. 

Conventions elected by the people met in the states to pass on 
the question of adoption. The first state to adopt was 
Delaware, whose delegates in the convention had been adopted by 
very outspoken against the plan of the large states, the states 



190 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

She was now glad to be the first to come under the " new roof," 
as the phrase of the day ran. The greatest opposition was in 
Virginia, New York, North Carohna, Massachusetts, and Penn- 
sylvania, all large states. They did not like to give up their in- 
dependence, as they said, in order to become parts of a centralized 
government. Against this the argument was made that it was 
necessary for each to give up something for the good of all. When 
the votes were finally taken, all these states voted to accept the 
constitution except North Carolina, which voted to postpone action. 

The Ninth MILLAR erected / 

"TheHatificatlonof the Conventions of nine States, Ihall be fuffitient forthe dbbjifh- 
mcnt of this Conftitution, between the States fo ratifjrjng the fame" Art. vii. 

INCIPIENT MJGNI PROCEDERE MENSES. 

The Attraction muft 
bt irrrfi/tible 




Adoption of the Constitution, 1788 
From the Independent Chronicle. 



She hoped that the union would be formed, but thought that amend- 
ments might be made in the constitution if three or four of the 
states would hold off for a while. Rhode Island rejected the 
constitution outright. Thus eleven states had voted for the 
new union. 

While the country had been going through this stage of progress 
very important things had happened beyond the mountains. 
The western This rich region was claimed by seven of the states be- 
lauds cause their boundaries by colonial charters had run into 
the West. Virginia claimed most of the region west of Pennsyl- 
vania and north of Tennessee, Connecticut claimed the region 
south of Lake Erie, North Carolina claimed what is now Tennessee, 



REMODELING THE GOVERNMENT 



191 



and Georgia claimed all the region between her present western 
border and the Mississippi. The other claims were not very im- 
portant. Before the war ended several of the states surrendered 
most of their western land to the United States. It was agreed 
that the lands should be settled and formed into new states. One 



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,** ^wiy* j»^^F* 


1 13 j^^j^jLjB^H , 


"r'«'">'^K. itp M 




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^^8 


1 'ii^Sj^^^^^^Pe^iiii^ 


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^ffi 



Campus Martius-Marietta, the oldest settlement in the Northwest 
From American Pioneer. 



of the things that the old congress had to consider was how to dis- 
pose of this land. 

In 1784 congress had before it what has been called the first 
Northwest ordinance. It provided that the western region north 
of the Ohio River should be divided into nine, and the pirst North- 
region south of it into seven, states. They were to be westordi- 
admitted into the union as they became settled, and "^°*^® 
until they were large enough to be states they were to be ruled 
under laws passed by congress. One of the rules proposed in the 
ordinance was that slavery should not exist in this region. This 
rule was defeated by the states of the extreme South. The rest 
of the ordinance was adopted by congress. It was the work 
of Thomas Jefferson, who was very anxious at this early time 



192 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

to put a check upon slavery. At that time most of the leading 
Virginians were opposed to the extension of slavery. 

In 1787 congress again took up the question of settling the 
Northwest, passing what is known as the Northwest ordinance of 
Second 1787. Jefferson was not present at the time, but he 

Northwest would have approved of the ordinance had he been there, 
ordinance j^. ^^^^^ ^^^ agreed that the region north of the Ohio 
should be divided into not more than five territories. When a 
territory had a population of 5000 free males, it passed into what 
came to be called a territory of the second class. It then had a 
legislature of its own to make laws for the territory. When 
it had a population of 60,000, congress might admit it to the 
union on equal footing with the other states. While this plan was 
made only for the territories of the Northwest, it was later adopted 
for all the other territories. Another important part of the 
second Northwest ordinance was that it forbade slavery in any 
part of the region north of the Ohio. Out of this area were 
created the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, and Wis- 
consin. The South did not oppose the second ordinance; for 
it said nothing about the region south of the Ohio. 

In 1785 congress adopted a plan for laying out the pubhc lands 
The town- offered for sale. The land was first laid out in townships 
ship system gix miles square. A square mile, or 640 acres, was called 
a section, and thus there were thirty-six sections in a township. 
The township system adopted at this time was followed generally 
in all the West. It was first applied to a strip of land in eastern 
Ohio, to which settlers began to come about 1787. 

At that time two other large settlements were well begun beyond 
the mountains. The first was Kentucky, and Daniel Boone was 
the man who discovered its advantages. He was a 
hunter from North Carolina, who loved the calm of the 
great forest. Crossing the mountains in 1769, he came at length 
to a fine blue-grass country full of buffalo and deer. It was 
the Indian's best hunting ground, and Boone was warned to leave 



REMODELING THE GOVERNMENT 



193 



Tennessee 



region, 



under penalty of death. But he liked the land and would not 
give it up. He returned to his home and spread such glowing re- 
ports of its beauty that many of his neighbors in North Carolina 
came back with him to make their homes in Kentucky. They were 
beset by the Indians, but managed to defend themselves. Soon 
the fame of the country had gone far and wide and settlers began 
to arrive from every direction. Kentucky was within the bounds 
of Virginia, and most of its later settlers came from that state. 
In 1792 it was admitted to the union as a state. 

The other western community that was then planted was Ten- 
nessee. It lay within the bounds of North Carolina, and the first 
settlers came from that state. They crossed the moun- 
tains about 1772 under the leadership of James Robert- 
son. They settled a pleasant valley in the mountain 
along the Watauga and Hol- 
ston rivers. When they found 
they were not within the 
bounds of Virginia, as they 
first thought, they set up a 
local government of their own 
with the name, "the Watauga 
association." In 1784 they 
organized a separate state gov- 
ernment, calling it the "State 
of Franklin," and hoping that 
it would be admitted into the 
union. But North Carolina 
objected and sent officers to 
arrest John Sevier, governor 
of the new state. The result 
was the collapse of the "State 

of Franklin." But the tide of settlers continued strong, and in 
1796 congress allowed Tennessee to become a state. 

Many Indian wars occurred in Kentucky and Tennessee before 




John Sevier 



194 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

they were states. Rarely did a settler go to bed without fearing 
that he would be attacked before morning. The Cherokee In- 
dians, who lived near what is now Chattanooga, were 

John Sevier ! ,, , . ., , , . ° ' 

especially troublesome, until the whites marched on 
them in their stronghold, slew those who did not flee, and burned 
the houses and grain of the Indians. John Sevier, called "Nolli- 
chucky Jack," was the most prominent leader in these wars, and 
he was greatly loved by the Tennesseeans. He was one of the 
leaders who defeated Ferguson at the battle of King's Mountain, 
1780. 

QUESTIONS 

I. In what special fields was there confusion after the revolution? 
Explain the nature of a bond. Where were the revolutionary bonds held? 
What amount was outstanding? How did continental money differ 
from continental bonds? In what respect was continental money a part 
of the revolutionary debt? What became of this money? How was 
revenue raised by congress? Why was it not well for congress to try to 
coerce a state? What came of the attempts to amend the articles? 

II. What was the cause of the hostility between townspeople and 
country people? Explain the demand for paper money. What was the 
demand of the merchants in regard to the import duties? How did the 
country people regard these demands? How did the opposition of these 
classes result? 

III. What danger lay in these dissensions? How did Virginia and 
Maryland come to hold a conference in regard to smuggling ? What was 
the result? Why did the Annapolis convention do nothing about trade? 
What did it accomplish? 

IV. When did the constitutional convention meet? Where? What 
bold step did it take? Explain the nature of the first important conflict 
in the convention. How was the compromise made on the question of 
representation? Describe the dispute over the representation of slaves. 
How was it compromised ? Why did some states hesitate to give congress 
power over navigation? What compromise was made on this question? 

V. Describe the adoption of the constitution by the states. Why 
did some of the people oppose the constitution? What states failed to 
adopt when the constitution was first submitted? 

VI. What states claimed most of the land west of the Appalachians? 
By what authority? To what government was this land surrendered? 



REMODELING THE GOVERNMENT 195 

For what purpose was a portion of the land reserved ? Describe the first 
Northwest ordinance. To what region did it apply? Who was its 
author ? What did it propose in regard to slavery ? What was the result 
in congress ? What did the second ordinance provide ? Through what 
stages would a territory normally pass? What did this ordinance say 
about slavery ? Why did the South allow it to pass? Describe the town- 
ship system. 

VII. Describe the work of Daniel Boone for Kentucky. When did 
Kentucky become a state ? Who was James Robertson ? What was the 
Watauga association? What was the "State of Franklin"? How did 
it fail? When did Tennessee become a state? What were the services 
of John Sevier ? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Nature of the Revolutionary Debt ; Shays's Rebellion ; The "Know 
Ye" Men ; the Men of the Constitutional Convention ; The Struggle for 
Adoption in Massachusetts ; The Adventures of Daniel Boone ; The "State 
of FrankUn" ; John Sevier as a Typical Frontier Leader. 



I 



CHAPTER XIV 
THE ACTUAL GOVERNMENT 

If we turn to the government under which the people Kved in 
1789, the year that the new constitution went into operation, we 
A double See that it had two distinct and important parts. On 
government one hand was the state with a complete set of laws, 
officials, and duties ; on the other was the United States, the 
union, with another set of laws, officials, and duties. The state 
was organized to do certain things, and the union or federal gov- 
ernment to do other things. We shall now consider the most strik- 
ing things that each had to do and show how they were done. 

With the revolution the state replaced the colony and took under 
its authority most of the things the colony had been doing. . It 
The duties saw that the people kept the peace and respected the 
of a state rights of their neighbors. If a man killed or injured 
another, or stole something, it was a state officer who arrested 
him. If two men disputed the ownership of property, it was to the 
state they appealed. State courts tried all such cases, and sheriffs, 
policemen, local tax collectors, and county officers all acted under 
the authority of the state. Thus, most of the things one saw be- 
fore his eyes, things which seemed the chief actions of govern- 
ment, were within the realm of the state authority. 

When the union was created, it was expected that it would not 
interfere with the power of the state over state affairs. Every- 
Duties of thing that could safely be left to the state was to be left 
the federal to it. But things that concerned all the states taken 
government ^Qgg^^j-^gr were to be given over to the federal govern- 
ment. Thus, no one state should have a right to declare war 

196 



THE ACTUAL GOVERNMENT 



197 



against a foreign power ; for if it could do so, it would bring on war 
in which all the rest of the states must take part. Since all must 
join in fighting the war, it was right that all should consent to make 
the war. Therefore, the right to declare war was left to the 
union ; and in the constitution it is stated that it shall be left 
solely to congress. Post offices and the mails, foreign affairs, coin- 




The Capitol at Washington 
In this building meet the two houses of congress and the supreme court. 

age, common standards of weights and measures, rules for com- 
merce between the states, and the power to create and keep up a 
navy, were also left to the federal government. 

The states have assemblies, or legislatures, to make laws on 

subjects that fall within their power. When a state ^, 

. The govern- 
law works badly, the legislature may make changes in j^g^^ ^f 

it or replace it by a new law. The legislature meets the state 



198 THE PLAIN STORY OP AMERICAN HISTORY 

at the state capital, in what is generally called the statehouse. It 
meets yearly in some states and once in two years in others. The 
people elect the members of the legislature by ballot. The legisla- 
tures consist of two houses, generally known as the senate and the 
house of representatives. In 1789 every state had some restriction 
on voting. In some of them a voter must own a certain amount of 
property ; in others he must be a taxpayer. It was thought that 
a man who owned no property should not be allowed to take part 
in choosing the men who were to levy the taxes on men who did own 
property. None of the states now restrict the vote to property 
holders, but many of them deny it to men who cannot read and write. 

The lawmaking part of the federal government is the congress. 
It makes laws on all matters which fall to the central government. 
The fed- Like the legislature it consists of two houses, a senate 
erai con- and a house of representatives. The senate is made 
^^^^^ up of two senators from each state. They are chosen 

for six years each, but they are so chosen that one-third go out of 
office every two years. The constitution of 1789 left the election 
of the senators with the state legislatures, but in 1913 it was de- 
cided that they should be elected by the people of the states. The 
representatives are elected by the people every two years, and they 
make up the house of representatives. 

A bill is a proposed law when it is still being debated : as soon as 
passed it is a law, or an act. When introduced in congress, it must 
How a law is first pass the house in which it originates. If it fails 
™ade there, it is dead. If passed, it is sent to the other house, 

and if it passes there, it has passed congress. Then it goes to the 
president, and if he signs it, the bill becomes a law. If he vetoes 
it, he sends it back to the house in which it originated and gives 
his reasons for the veto. If two-thirds of each house passes it again, 
it becomes a law, notwithstanding his veto ; otherwise it is dead. 
A law passes through a state legislature in the same way that it 
passes through congress. In all the states but one the governor 
has the power of veto. 



THE ACTUAL GOVERNMENT 199 

The senate of the United States does some things the house of 
representatives cannot do. For example, it approves or rejects 
treaties with foreign nations after the treaties have been Exclusive 
prepared by the president. The senate also approves power of the 
or rejects many of the high officers of the government, ^^'^^t®' 
The officers are selected by the president, and their names are 
then sent to the senate, which passes on them. If the president 
or other high civil officer is accused of wrongdoing, the charge is 
argued before the senate, which decides whether or not the charge 
is true. Such a trial is called an impeachment trial. The house 
of representatives does one important thing that the senate cannot 
do. It alone can orignate a bill to levy a tax. But ,.. 
the senate may amend the bill in the most extreme way house of 
when it comes from the house. The most important represent- 
tax bill is a bill to lay a tariff, and several of our 
tariff bills have been made over again when they got to the 
senate. 

That part of the government which sees that the laws are 
carried out is called the executive. The sheriff is an executive 
in the county, and the mayor is the executive of a town xhe execu- 
or city. There is a chief executive of a state and a tiveofthe 
chief executive of the United States. The former is ^*^*^ 
called a governor. In many states,' in 1789, he was elected by 
the legislature, but at present the governors are elected by the 
people. His term is usually four years. He cannot perform 
all the executive duties, and other executive officers take some of 
them. One such officer is the secretary of state, whose chief duty 
is to keep the records of the state government. Another officer 
is the treasurer, who keeps the money paid in by the people and 
pays out the money that the legislature orders spent. Still another 
is the auditor, who examines the accounts to see that the treasurer 
has not paid out what was not authorized. The auditor must re- 
port to the legislature how he has audited the accounts. The 
governor supervises all these and many other officers. His position 



200 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



is one of great honor, and the people look to him to see that good 
government exists. 

Of greater honor still is the office of the president of the 
United States. He is elected for a term of four years. Those 
The federal who made the constitution did not think the people 
executive were wise enough to elect the best kind of man 
for president. They, therefore, arranged it so that he should be 




The president's mansion, popularly called The White House 
Built in 1800 and several times enlarged. 



selected by a group of men known as presidential electors, who are 
now chosen by the people. Add together the number of senators 
and representatives allowed to a state, and you will have the 
number of presidential electors allowed to that state. On a given 
day the people of all the states choose their electors. Then the 
electors of each state meet and vote for a man for president and 
another for vice-president. They send a statement of how they 
have voted to the senate in Washington, which counts all these 



THE ACTUAL GOVERNMENT 201 

votes and declares who is to be president. On March 4 after the 
election the man chosen is inaugurated president with great cere- 
mony. He swears to see that the laws and the consti- Election of 
tution are enforced. - At first it was thought that the ^ president 
electors would act on their own judgment and select the man they 
thought best ; but it was soon seen that they were onl}'- agents 
of their parties and would vote for the men whom their parties 
had determined to have. The custom has arisen that a man may 
be chosen president a second time, but not a third time. Some 
people think this a bad custom, but the majority of the people 
seem unwilling to change it. 

The duties of the president are many. Since he must approve 
all the laws of congress, he must know whether or not they are 
good laws. At first it was not expected that he would xhepresi- 
have much to do with a bill until it passed congress and dent and 
came to him. But the custom has arisen of submitting lawmaking 
many laws to him in a private way before they go to congress. By 
this means he gives advice on the way a bill shall be written. He 
has much to do with the origin of the important laws. 

Another important thing he does is to nominate the higher 
officers of government, sul^ject to the confirmation of the senate. 
There are thousands of these officials, and much time is xhe appoint- 
given by a president to this part of his duty. He can- ment of 
not know who is the best man for every place. He, °®'^®''^ 
therefore, takes advice from the senators and representatives, who 
are usually ready to suggest candidates. If there is a bill before 
congress which the president wishes to see passed, he may let it 
be known that he will not appoint a senator's friends to office un- 
less the senator votes for the bill. Sometimes a senator is not 
willing to support the bills favored by the president unless he 
knows that the president is willing to take his advice freely in re- 
gard to appointments. This feature of our government sometimes 
leads to the appointment of men who do not make good officers. 

The president is also commander-in-chief of the army and 



202 THE PLAIN STORY OP AMERICAN HISTORY 

navy. He never goes into the field at the head of the army, but 
appoints the general who leads it. In time of war this becomes 
Commander- a most powerful function. But we must remember 
in-chief that the army and navy cannot exist without the money 

to support them. As long as congress alone can appropriate this 
money there is no danger that the president, whomever he puts 
at the head of the army, can make the army do as he wishes. 

A great many men are necessary to perform the duties that the 
government must do for the people. These duties are classified 
The great ^^ departments of administration. One relates to 
depart- foreign affairs, another to financial affairs. The con- 

™®°*^ stitution gives congress the power to create these de- 

partments as they are needed. When the government was es- 
tablished under the constitution, three departments were created ; 
that of the secretary of state, which has oversight of foreign affairs, 
that of secretary of the treasury, and that of the secretary of war. 
At the head of each was placed a prominent man. After a while a 
secretary of the navy was established. We now have ten depart- 
ments, and the heads of them are as follows : secretary of state, 
secretary of the treasury, secretary of war, attorney-general, 
postmaster-general, secretary of the navy, secretary of agriculture, 
secretary of the interior, secretary of commerce, and secretary 
of labor. 

The president calls these heads of departments together to give 
him advice about important matters. He is not obliged to call 
them or to follow the advice they give ; but he usually 
is glad to have their opinions. When they meet in this 
way, they make what is called the cabinet. To be a member of 
the cabinet is a great honor, and the men selected for the position 
are usually the leading men of the party which has elected the 
president. If the president dies, the vice-president takes his 
place; and after him the cabinet members one after the other 
are to fill out the unexpired term. No cabinet member has ever 
come into the presidency by this means. 



I 



THE ACTUAL GOVERNMENT 203 

If the president or one of the higher officers is guilty of a crime, 
he may be impeached. The house of representatives first takes 
up the case, and if it decides that the officer is guilty of impeach- 
wrongdoing, it presents charges against him before the ™^^t 
senate, which proceeds to hold a trial. This step is the impeach- 
ment. If two-thirds of the senate vote to support the charges, 
the person impeached is pronounced guilty, and the senate fixes 
the punishment. Judges, members of the cabinet, and one 
president have been impeached. The states also impeach officials 
who have committed wrong in office. We must not forget that to 
impeach is only to bring charges. 

The constitution of the United States says that there shall be 
a supreme court and such other courts as congress shall create. 
In the beginning, congress thought fit to establish two The federal 
grades of courts below the supreme court. One is a dis- courts 
trict court to which ordinary cases go in the first place. If the 
party who loses is not satisfied with the decision of this cburt, he 
may appeal to the circuit court of appeal, higher than the district 
court, and from that he may appeal to the supreme court. There 
is no appeal beyond the supreme court. Other courts have been 
created by congress for special purposes, as the court of claims. 
The object of these courts is to allow to every citizen the full- 
est opportunity to get justice. In doing this, the courts have 
fallen into the habit of giving every one a great deal of time to 
make appeals, and persons who are guilty have taken advantage 
of this to make appeals merely to postpone the day of punishment. 
The courts held under the constitution are known as federal courts. 

Each state has its system of courts. Among the lowest are 
the mayor's court and magistrate's court and the police courts 
of the towns. Above these are the superior courts of 
the counties, and highest of all is the supreme court of 
the state. Not all the states use these names for their courts, 
and in some of the large cities the courts are so many that it is 
difficult to keep them in mind; but they all come within the 



THE ACTUAL GOVERNMENT 205 

general classification just mentioned ; that is, a lower court for 
trivial offenses, a superior court for ordinary offenses, and a 
supreme court for final appeal. 

We must be sure to distinguish between a state court and a 
court of the United States, or a federal court. The first tries 
cases under the laws of the state, the second tries cases 

A csLution 

under the laws of the United States. The post office 
is under federal supervision, the laws that carry it on are federal 
laws : if a man robs the mail or a post-office clerk takes the money 
he receives at the stamp window, he violates federal law, he is 
tried in a federal court, and if imprisoned, he is usually sent to a 
federal prison. 

The judge presides over the court. He hears the evidence at 
the same time that the jury hears it, and he determines whether 
or not it is legal evidence. After the evidence has been 

A trial 

offered, the lawyers for each side make speeches to the 
jury, each trying to make the jury think that the evidence favors 
his own client. Then the judge sums up the case on its legal side, 
leaving the jury to say what the evidence is worth. He will fre- 
quently use words like these : " The legal point for you to decide is : 
Did such and such a thing happen as claimed ? Certain witnesses 
assert that they saw certain acts committed. If you believe they 
spoke truly, you must find that the charges are true. It is for 
you to say whether or not the evidence is sufficient to prove the 
charge." It is the duty of the citizens to select good judges and 
to give them the greatest respect when they are in office. The 
federal judges are not elected. They are nominated by the presi- 
dent and approved by the senate. In most states the judges 
are elected by the voters. 

The constitution of the United States may be amended in two 
ways. A new convention must be called when two-thirds of the 
states ask for it, and if two-thirds of each house of con- Amend- 
gress pass an amendment and it is then approved by the ments 
legislatures of three-fourths of the states, it becomes a part of the 



206 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

constitution. All the amendments made to the constitution have 
been made in the latter of these two ways. The state constitutions 
are amended more freely than the federal constitution, and some 
of the states provide for conventions at regular intervals to take 
up the question of amendment. 

The American government is a wonderful piece of machinery. 
Since every citizen at some time must take part in directing this 
machinery, it is his duty to know all he can about its construction. 
The merely general description that has been given in this chapter 
ought not to satisfy any wide-awake pupil. He ought to read 
further in some larger description, and especially he ought to find 
opportunity to visit the courts, the election booths, and, if possible, 
the legislatures, so that he may see the machinery of government in 
actual operation. 

QUESTIONS 

I. In what respect is our government dual? What kind of duties fall 
to the state? Give illustrations. Describe generally the duties of the 
federal government. Give illustrations. 

II. Describe the work of a state legislature. How is the legislature 
made up? how elected? What restrictions were formerly placed on 
voting? What is the duty of congress? How many houses has it? 
How are the senators chosen? the representatives? 

III. What is a bill? a law? an act? How does a bill become an act? 
What power has the president in making laws? How may a law pass 
against his will? How does a law pass in a state legislature? 

IV. Name some things the senate may do that the house of representa- 
tives may not do. How are the higher federal officials appointed ? What 
may the house of representatives do that the senate may not do ? 

V. What do you mean by the executive? Name some local execu- 
tives. What officer is the chief executive of a state ? of the United States ? 
How was the governor elected shortly after the revolution? How long 
is his term ? Name some of the other executive officers of a state. What 
are their duties ? 

VI. Who is the federal chief executive? How long is his term? 
How is he elected ? How are presidential electors chosen ? What custom 
exists in regard to the reelection of presidents ? What does the president 
have to do with the passage of a law? Describe his power in making 



THE ACTUAL GOVERNMENT 207 

appointments. How does it work? What is his miUtary power? How 
can he be kept from using the army as he pleases? 

VII. What is a department of state? What is the head of a depart- 
ment called? Name the heads of the departments now existing. What 
is the cabinet ? Who succeeds the president ? For what is a high officer 
impeached? What are the proceedings in such a case? 

VIII. What does the United States constitution say about courts? 
How many grades of courts exist under this constitution? What is the 
order of appeal in these courts? Name some special courts. What are 
federal courts? Describe the state courts. What is the difference be- 
tween a state and a federal court? How is a trial conducted? What 
part does the jury take ? What is the part of the judge ? 

IX. How may the constitution of the United States be amended? 
Which method has always been used ? Why is it important that all should 
know how our government is conducted ? 



SUGGESTED TOPICS 

Write a Bill on a subject assigned by the teacher ; write a veto message 
of the said bill ; The Impeachment of President Johnson ; The Nomination 
of Abraham Lincoln ; Chief Justice Marshall as Interpreter of the Consti- 
tution. 



CHAPTER XV 

THE NATIONAL GOVERNMENT UNDER THE FEDERALIST 

PARTY 

There was much bitter opposition to the adoption of the con- 
stitution in the years 1787 and 1788, when it was before the states. 
The con- Some men opposed it because they thought it took 
stitution too much power away from the states, others because 
supported by they thought it enabled the central government to in- 
terfere too much with the liberty of the citizen, and 
others because they thought a strong central government would 
become a despotism. Most of these men were honest in their 
views, but they were needlessly alarmed. They were disappointed 
because adoption had been carried, and it was freely predicted that 
they would make trouble sooner or later. This prediction was 
not fulfilled ; for as the years passed and none of the expected 
evils came to pass they became good friends of the new government. 

Two parties soon appeared. One was composed of those who 
had long favored a stronger government. They used the name 
Thefeder- federalist because it was popular. It was the name 
aiist party taken in 1788 by those who favored ''federating," or 
drawing the states closer together. Among its members were the 
merchants, wealthy planters of the South, and many men of edu- 
cation and conservative ideas everywhere. As these men were 
the leading men of any community in which they lived, they were 
able to carry many of the middle and poorer classes with them. 
When a country is beset by dangers, the people of every class 
naturally turn to the men they can trust. Thus the first senators 
and representatives elected under the constitution were the most 

208 



GOVERNMENT UNDER FEDERALIST PARTY 



209 



respected men in the country ; and that is the way the federaUst 
party got control of the government. We shall see how an oppo- 
sition party was formed against it. 

The first president was Washington. No elector voted against 
him, and he was inaugurated April 30, 1789, with the approval of 
all the people. He was a man whom any one could Washington 
understand, plain-spoken, honest, and unselfish. He as president 
held office for eight years, at the time when the new government 
was being put into 
operation. During 
this critical period the 
people felt that their 
affairs were in steady 
hands and were satis- 
fied. Washington pre- 
served the dignity of 
the government, and 
he did not hesitate to 
show that it was strong 
enough to make itself 
obeyed. He did not 
wish to take sides with 
any party, and took 
men of all opinions into 
his cabinet. He was, 
nevertheless, in sym- 
pathy with the federal- 
ists, and before he ceased to be president he began to lean to 
their party. 

The leader of the federalist party was Alexander Hamilton, of 
New York, whom Washington made secretary of the Hamilton's 
treasury. He was a very able man and understood plan for the 
finance better than any other prominent man of his day. ^^^^ 
He had to prepare a plan for paying the national debt and getting 




George Washin^on 



210 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



money to run the government. His principles were simple. Let 
us pay all our debts at par, he said, just as we promised to do in 
time of war. Most bonds had recently been selling for much less 
than their par value. As soon as Hamilton proposed to pay them 
in full, speculators began to buy them up at the market price and 
they would make money if Hamilton could finally get congress to 
take them at par. Hamilton's plan was opposed by some of the 
best men in congress. They said it was only a scheme to enrich 

the capitalist, and it was 
charged that members of 
congress were buying up the 
bonds cheap and voting to 
have them paid at par. To 
all that was said Hamilton 
had one reply : It was none 
of his business what the specu- 
lators did. There was the 
plain fact that the people held 
the promises of the govern- 
ment to pay certain amounts 
of money, and if the credit of 
the government was to be re- 
spected in the future, the 
promises must be redeemed 
dollar for dollar. He was right 
in his contention, and the people saw it. Congress passed his 
bill and the debt was paid as promised. From that time he had 
the earnest support of the business men of the country. 

Hamilton's next proposition was that congress should pay the 
debts which the states had incurred to carry on the revolution. 
Assumption These debts, he said, were made for the common cause, 
and all the states should unite in paying them. Much 
can be said for this plan, but it met with violent opposi- 
tion. Some thought it was only offered to make Hamilton and 




Alexander Hamilton 



of state 
debts 



GOVERNMENT UNDER FEDERALIST PARTY 211 

his friends popular in the states which found it hard to pay their 
debts, others thought it a bad example for the future, and Vir- 
ginia, which had already paid her revolutionary debt, thought she 
should not now be called on as a part of the union to help pay the 
debts of other states. After a warm debate it was voted that 
the federal government should assume the debts. The total 
national debt at that time was $77,500,000. 

Hamilton's third suggestion was a great national bank. It 
was opposed by his enemies because it gave too much power to 
the federal government ; but congress adopted it, and a national 
Washington approved. The bank's greatest service ^^^^ 
to the country was that it issued a large amount of its own bank 
notes, which the people were willing to take as money. This 
gave the country a sound paper money, and that was an advantage 
to a people who had no gold and silver mines and whose small banks 
issued notes that were of very doubtful value. 

Hamilton proposed to get the money he needed for the expenses 
of the government from duties laid at the ports. He also sug- 
gested that these duties be made high on all kinds of Protection 
manufactures so that the Americans would find it prof- of manu- 
itable to establish factories of their own. This is the ^^<^*^''®^ 
doctrine of protection of American industries. It was not 
adopted by congress when Hamilton suggested it. The only 
thing congress would do of that kind was to lay moderate duties 
to get a revenue. Twenty-five years later it adopted the policy 
of protection. 

Another plan of Hamilton was to lay an excise tax. This was 
a tax to be collected on spirituous liquor, and it was payable at the 
distilleries. His idea was that the excise would not only An excise 
yield revenue, but that it would also make the people ^^^ 
who paid it realize the authority of the new government. They 
would respect, he said, a power which could make them pay taxes. 
Congress passed the excise bill, and soon the back counties from 
Pennsylvania to Georgia were highly dissatisfied. They had been 



212 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

making whisky for years. It was the only thing they made that 
they could send to market with profit. 

Pennsylvania went farther than any other state in protest. 
The people of the western counties refused to pay the excise, 
Whisky whipped some of the officers who tried to collect it, and 

insurrection held large meetings denouncing the government. This 
event, which was called the whisky insurrection, was used by 
Hamilton to make a demonstration of the power of the federal 
government. He persuaded Washington to call out 15,000 troops 
from the adjoining states, and marched with them into the western 
counties of Pennsylvania. It was three times as many as were 
needed, and before them the western farmers gave up all thought 
of resistance. From that time the excise was paid regularly. But 
the people of this region were stout opponents of Hamilton in 
politics, and one of the first things done after congress passe#*out 
of the control of the federalists was the repeal of the excise act. 

Hamilton's leading opponent was Thomas Jefferson, of Virginia, 
whom Washington appointed secretary of state. He was as able 
Thomas a man as Hamilton, but his ability was of another kind. 
Jefferson It was as a leader of men of average intelligence and 
motives that Jefferson showed his greatness. He rejected the 
idea that only the best informed and most intelligent classes 
should rule. He felt that while the men of average minds might 
sometimes fail to do the best things in government, they were not 
likely to have bad motives. He believed that we may trust the 
people, and he set out to show the people that they could rule 
themselves. He believed that Hamilton's policy of bringing into 
the federalist party the men of wealth tended to form a govern- 
ment which had no sympathy with the people. Jefferson called 
his party the republican party. 

In 1796 it became necessary to elect another president. Wash- 
The election ington had been in office through two terms, and re- 
of 1796 fused to serve another. He was worn out in body, and 

wished for rest on his plantation at Mount Vernon. The 



GOVERNMENT UNDER FEDERALIST PARTY 



213 



federalists voted for John Adams, of Massachusetts, and the 
repubhcans for Jefferson. Hamilton could not be a candidate 
because his financial reforms had made him unpopular. The electors 
chose Adams president and Jefferson vice-president. It showed 
that the country was not yet willing to give up the federalists, 
who had established the 
government wisely under 
Washington. 

Adams had one term, 
1797-1801. He was a very 

honest man, but Adams and 

he did not know HamUton 
how to make himself popu- 
lar. He made many ene- 
mies, among them Hamil- 
ton, who wished to lead the 
party. Hamilton showed 
his dislike of Adams ver}'' 
plainly, and finally was at 
open war with him. The 
result was the complete 
defeat of the federalists in 
1800. After that they were 
never again able to have a 
president. 

The most important 
thing in Adams's presi- 
dency was the quarrel with France. It is a long story, and goes 
back to the presidency of Washington. In 1793 the Beginning of 
French people beheaded their king, and were at once the quarrel 
attacked by the other kings of Europe. They thought "^"^ ^'^""^^ 
they had a right to expect American sympathy, first because 
France had helped us in our struggle against England, and 
secondly because France was now a republic and the war was 




John Adams 



214 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



really fought by the kingdoms of Europe to put an end to repub- 
licanism in Europe. But Washington saw that we were too young 
a nation to risk a war with any power. Although there was a 
great outburst of feeling for France in the Southern and Middle 
states, he issued a proclamation of neutrality and kept it strictly. 

Soon after the war began 
Genet (pronounced Zhennay), 
Genet in minister from the 
America French repubhc, ar- 
rived in Charleston. He acted 
as though he were in his own 
country. He gave licenses to 
ships to become privateers and 
seize British trading ships, and 
he took steps to organize an 
army of Americans to attack 
Spain in Louisiana, This con- 
duct aroused England, for it 
meant that Genet was using 
our shores as a base from 
which to injure the nations 
at war with France. If we 
allowed this to continue, we 
were not truly neutral. Wash- 
ington gave orders to stop the 
activities of Genet, and when 
that gentleman at last arrived in Philadelphia, the seat of govern- 
ment, Washington received him with cool politeness. Genet 
became very angry. .He called Washington an "old dotard," 
and talked about appealing from the president to the American 
people. This threat was too much ; for no nation can allow a 
minister, who is a guest within its borders, to take part in its own 
domestic politics. Washington sent a letter to Paris requesting 
the republic to call home its minister and send another. The 




Abigail Adams, wife of John Adams 
She was noted for her wit and beautv. 



GOVERNMENT UNDER FEDERALIST PARTY 21A 

request met a speedy acceptance. Orders came that Genet be 
arrested and sent home for trial. His enemies in France were now 
in power, and it was evident that he would be put to death if 
he returned. Washington acted most generously, and refused to 
let Genet be sent back a prisoner. 




Mount Vernon 

A year later, 1794, we negotiated the Jay treaty, a commercial 
treaty with England. Its terms were hard, and made it very 
difficult to carry on trade with the British West Indies, The jay 
one of the most important fields of our commerce. It ^''eaty 
was humiliating to make such a treaty, but Washington signed 
it because he thought it would keep us from a war with Eng- 
land. He said that if we could remain at peace for twenty 
years, we should be so strong that we need not fear war with any 
nation. 

When the French learned that we had made a treaty with Eng- 
land in which we gave up so much to England's claim of superiority, 



216 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

they were very angry. The United States, they thought, had 
forgotten their old friends and were turning to that nation 
Indignation which was trying to stifle republicanism in Europe, 
of the The treaties we made with France in 1778 were still 

French ^^ force, and as they pledged us to an alliance with 

France against her enemies it seemed to the Frenchmen that we 
were violating our treaties. 

In 1796 Pinckney, a new minister, was sent to France, only to 
be insulted. He was told that no American minister would be 
Pinckney received, and a hint was dropped that he had better 
insulted leave France. He did not choose to go on a mere hint, 
and lingered in Paris for two months, when he was plainly told 
that he was liable to arrest if he i-emained longer. 

When the people of the United States knew how their minister 
had been treated, they were very angry. The insult was aimed 
_,. at the whole nation, and everybody felt it. The 

Three com- ' '^ ^ 

missioners more impetuous ones wished to declare war, but Adams 
sent to ^vas a prudent man. He acted on the principle that 

ranee j^ j^ ^^^^^ ^^ avoid war if possible. At his suggestion 

congress sent an extraordinary commission of three to see if France 
could be persuaded to patch up the difficulty. Pinckney was 
made a member of this commission, and Marshall and Gerry were 
appointed as his colleagues. They arrived in Paris in the autumn 
of 1797. They were not excluded from the country, but they could 
make no progress in their mission. The French minister of foreign 
affairs was the corrupt Talleyrand, who sent some of his friends to 
the commissioners with the private assurance that nothing could 
be done in France until money was paid to Talleyrand. Pinckney 
and his friends pretended not to understand. They were told 
plainly that money was needed, and suggested that $250,000 paid 
to Talleyrand would enable the commissioners to begin their 
treaty making. The suggestion was met with a stern refusal, 
and the commissioners sent a full report of their experiences to 
President Adams. 



aOVERNMENT UNDER FEDERALIST PARTY 217 

The matter was now laid before congress, 1798. The reports 
of the commissioners were pubhshed with only one change in them. 
Adams substituted the letters X, Y, and Z for the TheXYZ 
names of the agents who had told the commissioners papers 
that mone}^ would have to be paid. He was very indignant, and 
said that he would not send another minister to France until he 
was assured that he would be received as the representative of a 
powerful and independent nation. The reports from the com- 
missioners are referred to as the X Y Z papers. 

Congress was as indignant as the president. It passed an act 
allowing the president to raise an army of 10,000 men to defend 
the country. It also created a navy department, Warthreat- 
and ordered that three new frigates and thirty smaller ^^^^ 
ships be built. The few ships we had in the navy were authorized 
to take any French ships that interfered with our commerce. 
These warlike measures did not go quite to the point of waging 
war. against France. They might have gone that far if France 
had continued her course of contempt for the United States ; but 
when she saw that we were in earnest, ghe became more pacific. 

While war seemed probable, several sharp fights occurred in 
which French ships were defeated by American men of war. 
One of the ships was ^Insurgent, that had seized 
several American trading vessels. She was en- 
countered by the Co7istellation, whose captain, Truxtun, had been 
ordered to capture any French ship that interfered with our com- 
merce. He gave chase and forced the Frenchman to fight him. 
In an hour the American ship was victorious, and the French cap- 
tain came on Truxtun's deck as a prisoner. Within two years eighty- 
four French ships were taken by American ships. Had France 
wished war, she would now have declared it. But she allowed 
matters to drift along, and in 1798 she let it be known that 
she would receive commissioners to make a favorable . 
treaty. Adams was too wise to refuse this opportunity. 
He sent new commissioners to France, and the result was a treaty 



218 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

from which the two nations had many years of peace. Thus by 
patience Adams saved the country from a war with France. 

When the war feehng was at its highest point the federahsts were 
very popular, and they became over-confident. They seemed to 
Overcon- think they could do anything they wished. While they 
fident were in this frame of mind they passed what was known 

fe era ists ^^ ^^^ alien and sedition laws. The first was intended 
to deal with aliens, or foreigners, who were criticizing the president 
and the men who assisted him in carrying on the government. 
Some of these aliens were Frenchmen, some were Irishmen, and 
others were Englishmen. The law gave the president the power 
to send out of the country in times of peace any aliens whom he 
thought dangerous to the country. Another alien law was passed 
The alien to deal with aliens in time of war. It gave the presi- 
laws dent the power to order aliens whom he thought 

dangerous out of the country, or to imprison them. These laws 
encountered a storm of criticism from the republicans, who 
pointed out that they enabled the president to persecute, if he 
wished to do so, any alien who dared state that he or his friends 
were in error. They held that in every free government there 
ought to be ample liberty to discuss the actions of the I'ulers, for 
in so doing it was possible to point out the evils of government 
and to give the people an opportunity to correct them through 
the elections. The right of free discussion of public affairs is 
one of the chief means of protecting the liberty of the people. 

Another law passed by the overconfident federalists was the 

sedition law. It applied to our own citizens, and forbade them to 

r. J. . , say things which reflected on the wisdom of the govern- 
Sedition law r^i , i , , , • ,. i 

ment. Ihe law declared that if a man was charged 

with this kind of offense he might be acquitted if he could show 

that what he had said about the officers was true. But it is hard 

to prove that such things are true, although they are strongly 

suspected. The sedition law was aimed at citizens of the United 

States and the alien laws at persons who were not citizens. They 



GOVERNMENT UNDER FEDERALIST PARTY 219 

were all passed in 1798. They were bad laws because they lessened 
the right of discussion. 

The republicans said a great deal against these laws. They 
declared that the purpose of the federalists was to make every 
man afraid to say that the president and the other men Political 
in office should not be reelected. If this was allowed, capital 
it would make it hard to defeat for reelection any bad officials 
who might be able to get into office. They said plainly that the 
federalists meant to persecute all who opposed them and thus 
secure their own reelection through many years. One of the 
means the republicans employed to make it seem that the 
federalists were about to wreck the government was to adopt 
the Kentucky and Virginia resolutions. 

The republicans were in control in the legislatures of Kentucky 
and Virginia and felt that if these two states issued strong res- 
olutions concerning the alien and sedition laws, the ^ . , 

" ' Kentucky 

people of the country would be aroused to defeat the andVir- 
federalists. The resolutions announced it as a doctrine 8/"^^ resoiu- 
that the states had the right to prevent the enforce- 
ment of an act of congress which it had no authority to pass. The 
Kentucky resolutions went further than those passed by the 
legislature of Virginia, since they seemed to say that a state 
could declare that a law of congress should not be enforced if its 
legislature thought the law was not authorized by the United 
States constitution. The contention that a state could do this 
would not be accepted now ; for we should hold that it is for the 
federal supreme court and not for the legislature to say whether 
or not a law of congress is constitutional. In 1798 the power of 
the supreme court in such a matter was not so well established as 
later. The action of the Kentucky and Virginia legislatures made 
a deep impression on the people. It convinced many men that 
congress had gone too far, and the elections of 1800 showed that 
a majority of the people distrusted the federalists. 

The Kentucky and Virginia resolutions were important for two 



220 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

reasons. They helped defeat the federalist party in the election 
of 1800 and they stated a doctrine which was later on widened 
into the South Carolina doctrine of nullification. Still later it was 
enlarged into the doctrine that a state may leave the union if it 
believes that the acts of congress are not constitutional. In its 
later form the doctrine was known as secession. 



QUESTIONS 

I. Why was the adoption of the constitution feared by some of the 
people? What predictions were made? In what respect were they not 
fulfilled? What classes came to the support of the constitution? How 
did the word "federalist" come to be a party name? What classes of 
society made up this party ? Why was Washington the best man for the 
presidency? To which party did he lean? 

II. Who was the leading man in the federalist party? What was his 
position in the cabinet? Describe his political views. What was his first 
task as secretary? What was his idea about paying the national debt? 
What objection was made to his plan? What did congress do about it? 
Why did he think the state debts should be assumed? What was done 
about this? What was the total amount of the national debt in 1790? 
What was Hamilton's third suggestion? Why was a great national bank 
needed? What was Hamilton's idea in regard to the upbuilding of manu- 
factures? How long was it before it was adopted? Describe the excise 
tax. Why did the people of the back counties consider it a hardship? 
Describe the course of the whisky insurrection. How did Hamilton use 
the incident to increase the popular respect for the power of the federal 
government ? 

III. What position did Jefferson have in the cabinet? Compare him 
with Hamilton. Describe his political ideas. What party did he found ? 
What was the effect on political feeling? Describe the election of 1796. 

IV. What kind of man was .John Adams? What were his relations 
with Hamilton? Describe the beginning of the quarrel with France. 
Why did Washington insist on neutraUty ? In what ways did Genet abuse 
his position as minister? How was his mission terminated? What was 
the Jay treaty ? Why did Washington accept it ? 

V. Why did France resent our acceptance of the Ja'y treaty? How 
did she treat Pinckney? What prudent course did President Adams 
follow? How were the three commissioners treated in Paris? What 



GOVERNMENT UNDER FEDERALIST PARTY 221 

proposition came from Talleyrand ? How was it received by the commis- 
sioners? Explain the X Y Z papers. What warlike steps did congress 
take? Was this war? What was the effect on P>ance? Describe 
Truxtun's fight. How did the French governrnent treat these attacks? 
How was the French quarrel at last ended? 

VI. Describe the federalists' feeling of overconfidence. What is an 
aUen? What were the alien laws? How were the alien laws received? 
Why should we allow the people to criticize their officers freely? What 
was the sedition act? At whom was it directed ? On what grounds were 
these laws denounced? 

VII. What were the Kentucky and Virginia resolutions? -Why were 
they passed? In what respect did the Kentucky resolutions go farther 
than the Virginia resolutions? Why are these resolutions important? 
How were they related to the later announced doctrines of nullification and 
secession ? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Inauguration of Washington ; The Financial Plans of Alexander 
Hamilton ; Social Life at the Capital in Washington's Time ; The Whisky 
Insurrection ; The Trial of Dr. Cooper under the Sedition Act. 



CHAPTER XVI 

THE GOVERNMENT UNDER THE EARLY REPUBLICANS, 

1801-1811 

The republicans defeated the federalists in 1800 and remained 
the victorious party through every election until 1824. During 
The Virginia this long period every president was a Virginian and 
supremacy every vice-president but one was a New Yorker. The 
reason for this remarkable success is not hard to find. The 
federalists were chiefly men of wealth and social influence, and 
these classes are always a minority of the people. Among the 
republicans was the great mass of farmers, naturally the larger 
part of a nation whose people were mostlj^ devoted to agriculture. 
Jefferson was wise enough to unite the small farmers in his party, 
and he and his Virginia friends were able to lead the party for 
twenty-four years. After a while it seemed that nobody but a 
Virginian could be elected president. When this became apparent, 
the republicans of the North came to feel resentment for the 
Virginians, and the Virginia leadership came to an end. The 
reader must not confuse the republican party of Jefferson's day 
with the present republican party, which was founded in 1854. 
The twenty-four years of republican control may be divided 
into two periods. The first extends from 1801, when Jefferson 
was inaugurated, to 1811. During this time the 
active leadership was Jefferson's. He was reelected 
president in 1804 with a large majority of the electoral votes, and 
in 1808 he was so influential that he got his friend Madison elected 
to succeed him. In 1811 a group of young republicans came into 
congress determined to oppose the ideas of Jefferson. They 

222 



GOVERNMENT UNDER THE EARLY REPUBLICANS 223 

thought the country had submitted too long to the overbearing 
attitude of England and they demanded war. They were re- 
publicans in principle but they were not Virginians. They were 
so strong that Madison let them have their way ; and in 1816 
they allowed Monroe, another Virginian, to be chosen president. 
But they controlled the action of congress in many respects and 
enacted laws which Jeffer- 
son would not have sup- 
ported. The period during 
which the war republicans 
were at the head of the 
party lasted from 1811 to 
1825. This chapter deals 
with the events of the 
earlier of these two periods. 
The first thing that 
Jefferson took into con- 
sideration was Gallatin's 
the payment of financial 
the national p^^° 
debt. He very wisely ap- 
pointed Albert Gallatin, of 
Pennsylvania, secretary of 
the treasury. Gallatin was 
born and educated in 

~ . , , Thomas Jefferson 

Switzerland, a country 

from which many excellent financiers have come. It was his 
purpose to cut down all possible expenses and use the money 
he saved to reduce the debt. He thought too much had been 
spent on the army and navy and began his economizing in these 
departments. It was a great disappointment to the officers to 
find themselves dismissed and their regiments or crews dis- 
banded. Gallatin did not think that we should never have a 
strong army or navy, but he thought we could get along without 




224 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

them for a while, and in the meantime the debt could be re- 
duced. He made his calculation to pay off the debt in sixteen 
years. Jefferson approved all that Gallatin proposed and con- 
gress passed the bills to carry it out. 

The plan succeeded better than Gallatin had claimed. The 
country was growing fast, and every year the government got 
Success of more money from taxes than it got under the federalists, 
the plan go that Gallatin not only did what he had expected to 
do, but had a large surplus. Had it not been for the wars in 
Europe, which after 1807 began to cut off our foreign commerce 
and thus reduce the amount we received from duties, the debt 
would have been paid earlier than predicted. 

In 1803 the United States purchased Louisiana from France, 
gaining in this excellent bargain more territory than was formerly 
Purchase of comprised in all the states and territories. We were 
Louisiana lucky to get this vast region, and the way it happened 
was as follows : Napoleon, emperor of France, got the territory 
from Spain in 1800 to establish a great colonial empire in it. In 
1803 he gave up the plan, partly because he found it would cost 
too much and partly because he was about to begin war on England 
and thought in such a war England would seize his colonies. He 
was, therefore, willing to sell Louisiana for a small sum, but he 
told his minister to get as much as possible. 

Livingston, the American minister in Paris, was at this time 

trying to buy for his government a small strip of land on the 

Mississippi where New Orleans is situated. One day 
The terms , ,, • • i n^ n i i t-, i 

he was talkmg with lalleyrand, the l^rench secretary 

of foreign affairs, when Talleyrand said, " What would you give for 
all Louisiana?" Livingston was so much surprised that he did 
not feel like making an offer. He asked for time to confer with 
Monroe, who was expected in Paris in a few days. The negotia- 
tions were soon resumed ; and, three weeks from the time the 
matter was first broached, a treaty was signed by which we were 
to have all Louisiana for $15,000,000. Its western boundaries 



GOVERNMENT UNDER THE EARLY REPUBLICANS 225 



were not very clear at that time, but as they were finally settled 
they gave us all the territory west of the Mississippi as far as the 
Texas boundary and the Rocky Mountains. Jefferson was not 
responsible for the purchase : he only accepted a very favorable 
opportunity ; but the people thought the purchase was due to his 
ability, and his popularity was 
greatly increased. 

Just as this large area was 
added to our territory the ex- 
plorations of Lewis Lewis and 
and Clarke, two Clarke 
American officers, gave us a 
claim to Oregon. They set 
out in 1804 to find out all 
they could about the country 
to the west of the Missouri 
valley. After suffering many 
hardships they reached the 
mouth of the Columbia on 
Noveml)er 7, 1805. They 
took possession of the rich 
Columbia valley in the name 
of the United States and re- 
turned to the East in the 
following year with an account 
of what they had seen and 
done. Before this time the 
Oregon coast had been visited from the ocean by English, 
Spanish, and Russian explorers. It soon became a question who 
had the best right to it. We claimed that as we had approached 
from the interior and explored the Columbia valley we should 
own and settle all that region. It was not until 1846 that the 
dispute was finally settled, when England agreed to take the region 
north of the forty-ninth degree while we took that south of it. 

Q 




Meriweather Lewis 



226 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

In 1804 came another presidential election. The republicans 
renominated Jefferson, and the federalists took C. C. Pinckney, 
Election of of South Carolina, for their candidate. The record 
1804 of the republicans was so good that they carried all 

before them. When they came into office, the federalists declared 
that the country would suffer many evils. Not only had this 
failed to come true, but there had been very great prosperity. The 




The Western country and the route of George Rogers Clarke 



debt was being reduced, Louisiana had been acquired, and every- 
where Jefferson had shown that he meant to treat friends and 
foes fairly and impartially. The result was that he received 162 
electoral votes and Pinckney had only 14. 

Soon after Jefferson was inaugurated for the second time the 
country became full of reports of a scheme by Aaron Burr to 



GOVERNMENT UNDER THE EARLY REPUBLICANS 227 

create trouble in the Southwest. We have never been able to find 
out just what he had in his mind ; for he told different stories to 
several persons to whom he went for aid. He told the Burr's bait 
English minister in Washington that he was going to for England 
raise an army of hardy men on the Ohio River, seize New Orleans, 
and make a separate government out of the region in southern 
Louisiana. Such a country, he said, could never manufacture its 
own goods and would be dependent on England for merchandise. 
This, he argued, made it England's advantage to help him. Let 
her only advance money enough to pay his army, and station ships 
at the mouth of the Mississippi to keep the United States ships 
away, and she would some day have a fine trade in the Mississippi 
valley. But England was engaged in war with European nations 
at that time, and offered neither money nor ships. 

Then Burr turned to Spain, saying that he intended to seize 
New Orleans and set up a state which would be friendly to Spain 
and which would serve to keep the United States away 
from Mexico, then in the hands of Spain. The Spanish 
minister was pleased with this scheme, but his government would 
not furnish enough money to pay the army that Burr proposed to 
raise. 

Burr was a very persuasive man and had great ability in schem- 
ing. He was soon in the West, that is, in Kentucky and 
Tennessee, talking with influential men and hoping to For the 
get them to raise the force that he wanted. These western 
men were too loyal to take part in an open attack on p^°p*® 
New Orleans, and another story must be told them. Burr had 
it ready. He purchased an old land claim on the- Red River and 
caused it to be known that he was raising a band of Colonists to 
settle on it. As there would be much danger that his colonists 
would be attacked by the Indians they must go armed. To some 
of the influential men of the West he lifted the veil from a still 
more enchanting prospect. He told them that he would settle 
his colony near the Texas line, and then (^ross the line, wrench 



228 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

Texas and Mexico from Spain, and establish a great state in the 
rich lands he proposed to acquire. This was a very popular idea 
in the West, where Spain was much disliked. 

Burr was thoroughly untruthful. As we see, he told whatever 
story he thought served his purpose with the person to whom he 
Obscured was talking. It is very hard to say which of the 
by lies several stories expressed his real purpose. The people 

of the day believed that most of them were merely told to win 
support. He was a poor man and needed much money and a 
large number of bold men. He tried to get them by telling a 
network of lies. We shall, perhaps, never know just what was 
his real intention, but it is evident that he was a desperate and 
unprincipled man. 

Burr named November 15, 1806, as the time he would set out 

from his meeting place on the Ohio on his mysterious voyage. 

When the day came, the whole country was talking 

His journey , , • , » • ,- • , • 

about his scheme. An indictment was issued against 
him in Kentucky, l)ut it failed because nothing could be proved 
against him. Then reports reached Washington that he was 
going to attack New Orleans, and President Jefferson sent out a 
proclamation for the arrest of all who were planning treason against 
the United States. Burr heard of this order and did not dare wait 
longer on the Ohio. He placed what men he had, about sixty, 
on flatboats and started down the river. At Natchez, Mississippi, 
he learned that he would be arrested if he arrived at New Orleans. 
He deserted his followers and fled overland toward Florida, then 
held by Spain. Just before he could cross the line into safety 
he was arrested and sent to Richmond, Virginia, for trial. The 
charge was treason in levying war against the United States. 
To prove this it was necessary to show that he had collected an 
army with the intention of attacking New Orleans or other Amer- 
. ican territory. The witnesses testified that the army 

assembled and set out for New Orleans, but that Burr 
was not actually there at the time. The court decided that this 



GOVERNMENT UNDER THE EARLY REPUBLICANS 229 

was not treason by Burr, since he was not actually present when 
the treasonable act was performed ; and on this ground he was 
acquitted. The chief witness against Burr was General Wilkinson, 
who, it was generally believed, was at first in partnership with Burr 
and turned against him only when he saw that the scheme would 
fail. 

The most important and the most troublesome matter in Jef- 
ferson's second administration was England's practice of seizing 
our merchant ships and impressing American sailors Jefferson's 
wherever she found them on the high seas. Jefferson peace policy 
was intent on presei'ving peace. Like Washington ten years 
earlier, he felt that the country was not strong enough to go to 
war. He thought, also, that war was a profitless waste of life 
and money and that any dispute could be settled by peaceful 
means if the rulers were only wise enough to try it. Many promi- 
nent men hold these views of war and peace to-day ; but Jefferson 
was ahead of his time in holding them in 1806. When he tried 
to carry out his ideas, he failed, because the rest of the country was 
not so pacific as he. They would not put up with the insults of 
England, and they demanded war. Let* us follow carefully the 
story of Jefferson's dealing with the wrongs we suffered at the 
hands of England. 

Impressment was taking American seamen to serve on British 
ships on the ground that they were British sailors who had deserted. 
It is true that many British sailors did desert in Ameri- impress- 
can ports, and they found many friends to aid them in ^^^^ 
escaping from the British service, which at that time was very 
hard. Such deserters would take the first steps in naturalization 
and claim the protection of the American flag. This practice should 
not have been allowed, and, of course, deserters were handed back 
to the ships when it could be proved that they were deserters. 
But there were so many opponents of England in the ports that it 
was hard to get evidence to prove desertion. The captains of 
British ships of war were not willing to wait on the slow process of 



230 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

the courts. They ran their ships alongside of American ships when- 
ever they came across them and took off the deserters by force. 

This was bad enough, but it went much further. The British 
captains had very Httle respect for our navy, because it could not 
Impress- meet the great navy of England. For this reason 
ments they did not stop with taking real deserters, they took 

abused whatever sailors they pleased, many of them persons 

who had long been American citizens, and sometimes they took 
native-born Americans. No American sailor on the high seas 
could be sure that he would not be seized and made to serve in 
the British navy. We made many complaints to England about 
this conduct, but we received only discourteous refusals to do 
justice. Impressments were in reality only a kind of bullying 
of a weak state by a strong one. They caused much hard feeling 
on the part of the American people. 

The other cause of feeling against England was her restraint 
on our trade. From the beginning of her war with France she had 
Restrictions tried to keep American ships from carrying the sugar 
on American of the French West India Islands to the markets of 
*r*de Europe. Many ships were seized because they did 

not observe her orders in this respect, but Jefferson was not ready 
for war and he was content with presenting claims for the damages 
done, in the hope that England might be induced to pay them. 

In 1806 England took a more hostile attitude toward our ships. 
She was trying to starve France into submission by cutting off 
the American supply of foodstuffs. She declared a 
large number of French ports blockaded. This meant 
that British ships of war would capture and hold any neutral ships 
going to those ports. Napoleon, emperor of France, replied by 
declaring all the British ports blockaded. Then followed two 
British Orders in Council, and another French decree, the essence 
of which was that neither nation would allow an American ship 
to sail in European waters. If she was not taken by one nation, 
she would hardly escape the other. 



GOVERNMENT UNDER THE EARLY REPUBLICANS 231 

More of our ships were now being taken than ever, and there was 
danger that our people would get so angry that they would carry the 
government into war against its will. Jefferson was Theem- 
greatly concerned and made a plan of his own to deal ^^^go 
with the situation. He proposed to lay an embargo on all Amer- 
ican ships. This meant that he would let no American ship leave 
an American harbor as long as the embargo lasted. He thought 
that both England and France would need our wheat, corn, pork, 
and cotton and would change their laws in order to get it. He 
knew that to keep our ships at home would mean great loss to 
our shipowners and merchants ; but he felt that the loss would be 
only temporary, and he thought that all true patriots should be 
willing to sacrifice something to save the country from war. 

Congress passed the embargo at the request of the president 

and made stringent laws to execute it. It went into operation 

late in 1807, but there was great trouble in enforcing it. , 

.Its effects 
America was then almost the only neutral nation that 

could take part in the carrying trade for Europe. Freight rates 
were very high, and the American skippers were reaping large har- 
vests by carrying goods for the nations at war. They preferred 
to take chances on the sea rather than have their ships tied up at the 
docks. As many as could do so escaped to sea, but the majority 
remained at home unemployed. 

At the end of a year England showed no signs of giving way. 
In fact, it seemed that she was satisfied with things as they were. 

France, also, was determined to enforce her decrees. ^ , , 
T^ 1 • 1 T-» 1 Repealed 

But the Americans were suffering greatly. By the 

autumn of 1808 the farmers who made up the greater part of the 

republican party began to feel the pinch of the embargo, for 

they had just harvested their crops and could not export them. 

They complained so much that the leading republicans begged 

Jefferson to repeal the embargo. He leplied that if the country 

would hold out a little longer, England must yield. But they 

became so insistent that he at last consented, and the embargo 



232 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

act was repealed in 1809. In its place congress passed the non- 
intercourse act, which declared that our trading ships should not 
go to either Great Britain or France; but it gave the president 
the power to repeal this rule for the first of the two nations which 
repealed her restrictions on our trade. This act did no good. 
England and France were too bitterly at war to make concessions 
to what they believed a weak nation. 

The failure of the embargo was the failure of Jefferson's hope 
that he could by peaceful means force England to give up her 
Drifting to- restrictions. He had suggested it in order to preserve 
ward war peace. Now that it was a failure, the country drifted 
into war. Every month something occurred to increase the 
hostility of the Americans for Great Britain. On the other hand 
the conduct of the British ministry was most unpleasant. They 
showed plain contempt for us, and did not take ordinary pains 
to remove our feelings of distrust. Thus throughout the United 
States the war spirit was slowly kindled and England was need- 
lessly the cause of it. 

While the people were talking about the embargo the presidential 
election of 1808 was held. Jefferson announced that he would not 
The election serve another term, and said that it would not be well 
of i8o8 for any candidate to be elected more than twice. His 

action established a precedent from which we have not departed 
in any later election. But he was able to have James Madison, 
of Virginia, elected in his place. Madison was a republican, and 
carried out the Jeffersonian policies. 

QUESTIONS 

I. How long did the Virginians keep the presidency without interrup- 
tion? What state usually had the vice-presidency ? What was the cause 
of the republican success? Why did the Virginia influence at last break 
down? When was the present republican party founded? Into what 
two divisions was the period of republican rule divided ? What new group 
of republicans appeared about 1811? What was their attitude toward 
a Virginia president? 



I 



GOVERNMENT UNDER THE EARLY REPUBLICANS 233 

IL Who was Albert Gallatin? What was his plan to pay off the na- 
tional debt ? What was his attitude toward the army and navy ? How 
did his plan work? 

III. Why did Napoleon acquire Louisiana? Why did he decide to 
sell it? How was the bargain made? What were the boundaries? 
What was Jefferson's part in the purchase? How did it affect his popu- 
larity? Describe the explorations of Lewis and Clarke. What other 
nations had claims to the Pacific Northwest? How were these claims 
settled ? 

IV. Describe the election of 1804. What were the reasons for Jef- 
ferson's popularity ? Why can we not be sure about the scheme of Burr 
in the Southwest? What was his proposition to the English minister? 
How was it received ? What did he tell the Spanish minister? How was 
it received ? What did he say to the people of the West ? How did his 
plan concern Mexico? Why are we justified in pronouncing Burr un- 
truthful? Describe his journey down the Mississippi. What induced 
him to make it before he was ready ? Describe the trial. On what ground 
was he acquitted? 

V. In what manner was Jefferson embarrassed by our relations with 
England? What was his theory in regard to peace? Why did it fail? 
What was the practice of impressment? In what way were Americans 
in the wrong? How did the British ship captains show their opinion of 
the American courts ? To what extent did they carry their misconduct ? 

VI. What was England's attitude toward our carrying trade with the 
French islands? What more severe regulations were made in 1806 and 
afterwards? How did Napoleon reply to them? What were the effects 
on the American trade? What was the embargo? Why did Jefferson 
lay it ? Which classes suffered most ? How did the shipowners feel about 
it? What caused its repeal? What act took its place? How did the 
situation indicate war? How was England responsible for it? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The War with TripoU ; The Explorations of Lewis and Clarke ; Pike's 
Journey into the Southwest ; The Two Sides of the Impressment Question ; 
The Trial of Aaron Burr. 



CHAPTER XVII 



THE WAR OF 1812 



" war 
hawks 



England's conduct caused many Americans to cry out for 
vengeance; but the men who directed the government were 

Rise of the against war. Jeffer- 
son, Madison, and 
their leading advisers 
had seen the dark days of the 
revolution. They remembered 
how hard it was to win inde- 
pendence, and feared to im- 
peril it by beginning a war we 
might not win. It was better, 
they said, to endure insults a 
little longer. But there were 
many young men in the country 
who did not share their feeling 
of caution. They believed 
that we could defeat England, 
and demanded that we should 
give her fair warning, and then 
declare war if she did not 
relax her hard treatment. The 
older leaders pronounced these arguments rash, and dubbed the 
young men "war hawks"; but the people were pleased, and in 
1810 so many of the "war hawks" were elected to congress that 
they were able to control its action. By reason of our peculiar 

234 




James Madison 



THE WAR OF 1812 



235 



system they did not take their seats until late in 1811, but from 
that time the attitude of our government was warlike. 

Madison himself became alarmed, as well he might be, for 1812 
was an election year. He could not hope to be reelected if he 

clung to the pohcy Madison's 

of peace at any change of 
price. After a while p°"**^°" 
he began to favor the war 
party, and soon afterwards the 
leaders of the war party an- 
nounced that they were for 
Madison's reelection. Among 
the young men who now took 
a strong hold on public affairs 
the most prominent were Henry 
Clay, of Kentucky ; Grundy, 
of Tennessee ; Peter B. Porter, 
of New York ; and three promis- 
ing young men from South 
Carolina, — Calhoun, Lowndes, 
and Cheves. 

The rise of the war feeling 
in the United States was known 
in England. The England 
ministers there did relents 
not wish war with us, but they 

knew how pacific Madison was, and they thought they could do 
as they wished without arousing him to the fighting point. Now 
that the "war hawks" were in control these ministers began to 
show more courtesy. When they heard that congress had passed 
laws to raise a larger army and were about to order new ships 
for the navy, they knew the situation was serious. Then they 
began to talk of repealing their restrictions on American trade. 
June 16, 1812, they announced that the restrictions would 




Mrs. James Madison 

For many years the most popular woman 
in Washington 



236 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

be withdrawn, and a week later the withdrawal was actually 
made. 

If a cable had connected the two countries, the war of 1812 
would probably have been avoided. As it was, the American con- 
War de- gress passed a declaration of war on June 18, two days 
Glared after the British ministry had given notice that they 

would repeal the chief cause of the war, the restrictions on our 
commerce. When the British heard that we had declared war 
in spite of their yielding, they thought that we might be induced 
to make peace without beginning to fight ; but the American people 
were so thoroughly aroused that they would not think of peace. 
Great Britain was then straining every nerve to defeat Napoleon, 
and did not want war with the United States. 

Most Americans believed that Canada could be taken in a few 

months. England was not able to spare from the war beyond the 

Our attack Atlantic enough troops to hold the country against a 

on Canada strong army from our side of the Great Lakes, and 

Canada herself was thinly settled. It seemed certain, therefore, 

that we should soon carry our boundaries far northward. 

Throughout the three years of the war we made our greatest 

efforts on this boundary. At first we were badly beaten, and 

then we were able to hold our own, but during the war we were 

not able to carry, on a successful campaign in Canada itself. The 

cause of this failure was the weak organization of the American 

army and the poor commanders placed at its head. The soldiers 

were raw militia who had not been trained to serve against seasoned 

troops. The officers were appointed through political influence 

and knew not what a battle was like. As the war 
The army 

progressed the men learned better the business of the 

soldier. The good officers in the lower grades were gradually 

promoted to higher command, while the older commanders lost 

enough battles to insure their dismissal from high places. Had 

the war lasted another year, the army would probably have given 

a better account of itself. 



THE WAR OF 1812 



237 



Our navy 



The second place at which we sought to injure our enemy was on 
the sea. England had many times as many ships as we, and she 
had swept her enemies from the seas in Europe so com- 
pletely that she could send a large number of ships 
into American waters. But when the war began, she did not ex- 
pect severe fighting from Americans and carelessly allowed her 
inferior vessels to meet us. The result was a series of brilliant 
American victories which opened the eyes of Englishmen. The 




Battle between the G^iLniere and the Constitution 



first was the victory of the Constitution, commanded by Isaac 
Hull, over the Guerriere, a British ship which had become noted 
for impressments of American sailors. The American vessel was 
a little the larger, but Hull fought with fine skill and courage. 
No other antagonist, it was said, had ever overcome a British ship 
on the same conditions. As news of victory after victory came in, 
American pride in the navy reached high pitch, and before the 
war ended congress ordered that many new ships be built. 

The American victories put England on her mettle, and she 
sent out her best ships. One of them was the Sha7vnon, whose 



238 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



captain burned to redeem the honor of the British navy. He 
waited outside of Boston harbor until he met the American ship 
The navy Chesapeake, commanded by Captain Lawrence. A 
checked battle followed, in which Lawrence was defeated and 
killed. He was not prepared for battle, and should have avoided 
it; but he was too bold to run away. His last words as he 

was carried below, mortally 
wounded, were " Don't give 
up the ship"; and they be- 
came the motto of the navy 
in many a campaign. By 
1813 the British had many 
ships in America, and they 
blockaded our ports so closely 
that our navy was able to do 
nothing more on the sea dur- 
ing the war. 

On the Lakes, however, the 
American navy won two im- 
On Lake portant victories. 
Erie One was in 1813 on 

Lake Erie, when Perry, who 
had worked night and day to 
build his ships, met a British 
squadron and defeated it by 
hard fighting. The British 
ships were destroyed, cap- 
tured, or driven into hiding, and the American flag went where it 
would over all parts of the lake. The result was that the British 
could not hold their forts at the western end of the lake, and 
all the region round Detroit fell into American hands. The 
other victory was won on Lake Champlain in 1814. The 
British had invaded upper New York with a great army, 
hoping to cut off New England from the rest of the country 




Captain James Lawrence 
Commander of the Chesapeake 



THE WAR OP^ 1812 



239 




Captain Oliver Hazard Perry 



by taking the Hudson River. 
The expedition was hke Bur- 
goyne's invasion in 1777, but 
it did not get so far south- 
ward. It was met on the 
lake by a small American fleet 
commanded by McDonough. 
In the battle the OnLake 
enemy concen- Champiain 
trated their attack on the 
Saratoga, the largest Ameri- 
can ship. Two hours of hard 
fighting left her disabled, but 
McDonough skillfully turned 
her around and presented an 
uninjured broadside to the 
enemy. In a short time the 
largest British ship struck her colors -and the squadron drew 
off defeated. The result of the action was that the invasion 
of New York was abandoned. 

While this campaign was being- 
conducted, 1814, a strong British 

force was operating Washington 

around Washington, taken 
Landing on the shore of Chesa- 
peake Bay it marched across the 
intervening country to attack 
Washington. The militia was 
hastily called out, but they had 
a poor commander. He posted 
them at Bladensburg, five miles 
from the capital, across the road 
by which the enemy was ad- 
perry's battle flag vaucing. The battle was a 




240 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



disgraceful defeat for the militia. They had no confidence in 
their commander and ran at the first fire. The British 
followed them and took Washington without further opposition. 
They burned the capitol, the president's mansion, and the offices 
of the secretaries of the departments. They claimed that it was 
legitimate retaliation for the destruction of buildings in what is 
__^_^____^_^________^ now Toronto, which had suf- 

■WASHiNGxoN ^ fered in an American raid in 

1813. But the damage they 
did was much greater than we 
had done in Toronto, and the 
pleasure with which the British 
general burned the buildings 
in Washington showed that he 
wished to do as much damage 
as possible. 

From Washington he turned 
to Baltimore, a place from 
Failure to which many fast 
take Baiti- ships had gone out 
™°'® to destroy British 

merchant vessels. He was very 
anxious to make it smart ; but 
the people were aroused by the 
fate of Washington and made 
heroic efforts to save their 
town. They threw up breastworks before the British army and 
sunk ships in the harbor. The enemy tried to destroy Fort 
McHenry, which commanded the harbor, but failed after an 
all-night bombardment. Nor could the troops carry the breast- 
works. The campaign proved a failure, and the army was placed 
on its transports to be sent against New Orleans later in the 
year. It was during the night attack on the fort that Francis 
Scott Key wrote "The Star-Spangled Banner." At the time he 




THE WAR OP 1812 241 

was a prisoner on a British ship and waited the dawn with great 
anxiety to know if the American flag still floated over the fort. 

Let us now turn to the Southwest, where a more fortunate 
campaign was fought by the militia. Tennessee and Kentucky 
were very eager for the war to be declared, and very Cautious 
willing to take part in it. They hoped it might lead Spain 
to the expulsion of Spain from Florida, but Spain was too cautious 
to give us an opportunity to attack her. She was a close ally 
of England in the European war, but was careful not to take 
part in the struggle on this side of the ocean. This did not keep 
us from seizing Mobile in 1813. We claimed that it belonged to 
the United States by the Louisiana purchase treaty. 

Late in the same year news came that the British were fur- 
nishing arms to the Creek Indians, in what is now Alabama. 
These Indians had begun to attack the settlers on the War with 
Tennessee border. The president immediately called ^^^ Creeks 
out a body of Tennessee troops to subdue the Creeks. They were 
led by Andrew Jackson, a militia general, who conducted his 
campaign amid the greatest difficulties. He remained in the 
Indian country throughout the winter, and in the spring of 1814 
defeated the Creeks in a decisive battle at Horseshoe Bend. Most 
of the surviving Creeks fled into Florida, and the rest made a 
treaty ceding more than half of their land to the United States. 
This was so well clone that the president made Jackson a major- 
general in the regular army and appointed him to command the 
district in which lay New Orleans and Mobile. 

In the autumn of 1814 Jackson learned that the British were 
about to attack the gulf coast. He made what arrangements 
he could to place his district in a state of defense. He The British 
was greatly puzzled to know where the enemy would before New 
land, but when they cast anchor before New Orleans in ^ ^^"^ 
December he was in the city busily planning fortifications and 
calling to his aid all the available militia of the Southwest. After 
twelve days' hesitation the British army began to land on the banks 



242 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



of the Mississippi on December 23. The moment Jackson 
knew of the British movement, he ordered his army to attack. 
They fought a vigorous night battle ; but the British were heavily 
reinforced during the night. 

In the morning the enemy were too strong to be driven into the 
water, and Jackson decided to fall back a mile and intrench across 
strong in- the strip of high ground by which New Orleans was 
trenchments reached. For two weeks each side prepared for the 
final test of strength, the British bringing up all their men to the 

number of 10,000 and the 
Americans constructing excel- 
lent breastworks, behind which 
were nearly 6000 men, mostly 
Tennessee and Kentucky rifle- 
men, noted for their good 
marksmanship. 

The final attack was made at 
dawn, January 8, 1815. The 
Battle of British had defeated 
New our militia so often 

°"^^^"' that they no longer 
respected it. One of their 
officers went into the battle 
clad in a red overcoat, and 
when told to remove it replied with disdain that he would never 
take off his coat before Yankee militia. At the close of the action 
he was found dead on the field. Had the British been cautious, 
they would have tried to get into the city by some other way than 
b}^ scaling the works which the Western riflemen defended. As 
they rushed forward in strong columns they received at close range 
a steady and well-aimed fire that drove them back in confusion. A 
second and third charge were also driven back, and the troops 
lefused to advance again. As the smoke of battle drifted away the 
ground before the American lines was seen to be strewn with dead 




THE WAR OF 1812 243 

and wounded. On it were the bodies of 1971 men, and the loss 
behind Jackson's Hnes was only 13. The British commander, 
Pakenham, was among the dead. His successor was glad to em- 
bark the army and leave the coast. 

The battle of New Orleans was fought after commissioners from 
the two nations had signed a treaty of peace at Ghent, December 
24, 1814. Actual fighting should have ceased at Treaty of -^^ 
once, but it was not until February 11, 1815, that the Ghent '\ 
good news reached New York in a vessel much delayed by storms. 
The terms of the treaty were favorable to neither party. Both 
nations agreed that the war should cease, and that territory seized 
on each side should be given up. Nothing was said about impress- 
ment of sailors or trade restrictions. In fact, it was not necessary 
to mention these subjects ; for England was now at peace in 
Europe and she had ceased to impress our sailors or to endeavor 
to interfere with our trade. 

Two important results came out of the war: 1. It broke the 
power of the old republicans and placed in control of the party 
the leaders of the war movement. The oM republicans 

ITCW^ D0I1CI6S 

were honest but timid, and they were afraid to under- 
take new policies lest something happen to destroy the liberties 
of the people. The new leaders were not timid, and they were 
practical men. They believed that liberty was not in danger 
and were willing to make any law which the good of the country 
seemed to demand. We shall see in a later chapter that this 
spirit resulted in some very important legislation. 

2. The war of 1812, together with the four years of restriction 
that went before it, gave a great impetus to the growth of American 
manufactures. Through seven years it was difficult Manufac- 
to import merchandise from Europe, and prices for t^^es 
manufactured goods rose. This gave the small manufacturers 
in New England and the Middle states an opportunity to make 
money. They enlarged their factories and built new plants, and 
before the end of the war they were making most of the things the 



244 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

people needed. A great deal of the capital that had been invested 

in commerce and shipping before the war was now drawn into 

manufactm^es. 

QUESTIONS 

I. Why did the older republican leaders hold to the policy of peace? 
Who were the "war hawks"? What influence did they get in congress? 
How did this strike Madison? What bargain was probably made? 
Who were the leading men of the war party? How did England view the 
rise of war feeling in America? What relaxation did she make? Show 
why it came too late. Was it possible to make an early peace ? 

II. Why did it seem certain that we should take a large part of Canada? 
What came of the attempts? What was the matter with our army? 
In what way did it improve ? 

III. What was England's strength at sea? Why were we able to win 
victories? Describe Hull's brilliant victory. What effect did this have 
on congress ? on England ? Describe Lawrence's battle with the Shannon. 
What was the effect of the British blockade on the American navy? 
Describe Perry's victory on Lake Erie. Describe McDonough's victory 
on Lake Champlain. What was the effect of each? 

IV. Describe the attack on Washington. How was the place de- 
fended? What punishment was inflicted on it? How did the British 
justify their conduct? How were the British cheeked before Baltimore? 
What famous song was now written? By whom? 

V. Why did the men of the West hope that Spain would take part in 
the war? What course did Spain follow? How did we get possession of 
Mobile? Describe the war with the Creeks. What was the result? 
Did aU the U\nng Creeks take part in the treaty that ended the war? 
Who won the Creek war, and what promotion did he obtain? How did 
Jackson receive the British when they first landed ? Describe the battle of 
New Orleans. How did the British show contempt for the miUtia ? 

VI. What were the terms of the treaty of Ghent? What was won by 
the war? Why did impressment cease to be a matter of dispute? What 
change was now apparent in the policies of the republicans? To whom 
was it due? How did the war help the manufacturers? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Chesapeake-Leopard Incident, The President and, the Little Belt; 
General Wilham Henry Harrison ; The History of the F'lag ; The Fight 
between the Constitution and the Guerriere; The Battle of New Orleans; 
Making the Treaty of Ghent. 



CHAPTER XVIII 

THE SETTLEMENT OF THE WEST, 1783-1820 

While these difficulties occupied the time of persons connected 
with the government, the people were passing through a stage of 
great prosperity. The rich unsettled lands of the An era of 
West attracted the poor men, who were glad to establish prosperity 
farms of their own. The population grew rapidly, and there was 
always an increasing amount of trade to enrich the merchants. In 
1790 the first census was taken. It showed that the entire popula- 
tion was 3,929,214. Thirty years later, in 1820, the population 
was 9,638,453, an increase of nearly six millions. During this 
period the wars in Europe had produced so much confusion there 
that few immigrants had come to Ameriea. Most of our popula- 
tion, therefore, was of native American stock. 

At the end of the revolution several thousand people had crossed 
the Alleghanies into Kentucky and Eastern Tennessee. Besides 
these two small groups no one but Indians lived in the Moving 
vast forest from the Great Lakes to the French and westward 
Spanish settlements along the borders of the Gulf of Mexico. 
In 1820 more than two millions of white men of English stock 
had made their homes there. As far west as the Missouri River 
the ax rang against the great tree trunks as forests fell in order 
that farms might be cleared. From the South and the North alike 
went emigrants to this region. 

The movement of the Southerners was westward and south- 
westward. Most of those who went west settled in 
Kentucky and Tennessee. Every road across the moun- ^j^^ gouth- 
tains was full of wagons loaded with the household emers 

245 



246 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

goods of men going to form homes in the rich lands they had heard 
about. In the older counties of the East appeared sharp men 
offering the western lands for sale at low prices. Sometimes a 
wealthy planter would buy a large tract and send his son with 
a group of slaves to clear and cultivate it. Sometimes it would 
be bought by small farmers who owned no slaves. Sometimes it 
was bought b}^ rich speculators who expected to sell it after a 
while at a profit. In this way a great deal of the strength of the 




Conestoga Wagon and Team 
Ordinarily used by people moving to the West. 

East, both in population and in money, went away into the West. 
Those who stayed at home saw the process with regret. They 
did not believe in building up new settlements at the expense of 
the old. 

In 1793 the cotton gin was invented by Eli Whitney. It was 
a machine to remove the seed from cotton, and it proved a great 
The cotton boon to the South. Before that time rice was grown 
&^^ in the swamp regions of the Carolinas and Georgia, 

and sugar in Louisiana. But most of the land of the South is 
sandy uplands, on which neither rice, sugar, nor tobacco was grown. 



I 



SETTLEMENT OF THE WEST, 1783-1820 



247 




The First Cotton Gin 



It was adapted to the growth of food, corn, forage, and hogs; 
but there was no market for large quantities of such products. 
It was also well adapted for the growth of cotton, but no one had 
dreamed of giving it over to cotton because of the expense of re- 
moving the seed by hand. Cotton cloth at that time was sold at 
a higher price than the ordinary 
grades of woolens and linens. The 
invention of Whitney's gin made 
it possible to give this great in- 
terior region over to cotton culti- 
vation. From North Carolina to 
southern Texas, and up the Mis- 
sissippi River to northern Ten- 
nessee, lies the region in which 
our cotton crop is now raised. It 
brings more money into the country 
than any other crop we have. No 
other region has been able to take 

away from our Southern states their* position as the greatest 
cotton-growing region in the world. 

The people of the Middle states who moved to the West turned 
naturally to the Ohio valley. Since the Virginians had preceded 
them into Kentucky, most of them took the country Middle- 
north of the Ohio River. Great covered wagons carried states mi- 
them over the mountains to Pittsburg and then across ^* °° 
the plains to the southern parts of Ohio, Indiana, and Illinois. 
By this route came also a great many Virginians, particularly 
those who did not own slaves and wished to live where a poor man 
had equal opportunity with his neighbor. 

The people of New England took a route still further north. 
They were charmed by the stories of lands so much Migration 
more fertile than their own and migrated in large from New 
numbers. They generally went first to Albany and ^^^^^'^'^ 
thence westward through the Mohawk valley. Western New York 



248 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

was unsettled at the close of the revolution, and it was here that 
the New Englanders first made their homes in the march to the 
frontier. By 1800 they had reached Lake Erie and were passing 
along its southern shore into Ohio. Connecticut had an old 
claim to land in this region, but she had ceded it to congress, re- 
serving a generous slice in northern Ohio, which she sold to build 
up her school fund. This strip was called "the Western Reserve," 
and a large part of its settlers were from Connecticut. Thus it 
happened that the country between the Ohio and the Lakes 
was settled by two bands, or zones, of population : one from the 
Middle states and the South, and the other from New England. 

Travelers who passed from one zone to the other before the 
civil war noticed a wide difference in manners. Near the Ohio 
Two zones the people lived in the good-natured ease of the 
ofpopuia- Southerners. They had horse races when their 
^^'^ hardest work in the fields was finished, shooting 

matches, country dances, and many other vigorous games. They 
settled as the land seemed good, and it was several years after a 
neighborhood was peopled before the rough frontiersmen began 
to think of schools and churches. In the northern zone the 
New Englanders settled in a very orderly manner. They were 
Puritans in their old homes, and they built churches and estabhshed 
schools as soon as they got their own cabins erected. They tried 
to build up the New England life in their new liomes. 

At first the only way of getting across the mountains was the 
roads which ran through unsettled wilderness. Of course, these 
Travel in roads were not kept in repair. They were used not 
the West only by the travelers who sought new homes, but great 
wagon trains moved along them, carrying merchandise to the set- 
tled communities beyond the mountains. In the rainy seasons 
they were nearly impassable. The inns were rude wooden build- 
ings in which the guests had little comfort, and the food was often 
bad. Rich men organized the business of taking freight across 
the mountains, sending out wagons in groups. The drivers were 



SETTLEMENT OF THE WEST, 1783-1820 



249 



the terror of unprotected women and girls. At first there was 
much rough hving on the frontier, north and south, but the 
progress of civihzation was steady, and rude manners yielded 
gradually to the influence of refinement. 




An Old Stagecoach in Early Kentucky 



Ji^}h 



As population advanced into the West towns sprang up. Pitts- 
burg, the western end of the wagon route over the Pennsylvania 
mountains, became a place of great importance. Near Towns in 
it were iron ore and coal, and it soon became an iron- ^^^ West 
manufacturing center for the Ohio valley. Further down the river 
was Cincinnati, which became the distributing point for mer- 
chandise throughout southern Ohio and part of Indiana. Still 
further on was Louisville, built at the falls of the Ohio, where the 
flatboats that came down the river must unload their produce. 



250 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

It was a place where the country produce of the interior was col- 
lected, and many a fine cargo was here made up and sent to New 
Orleans, where it passed into other hands before it went out to 
sea, to the markets of Europe. St. Louis was an old French town 
established where the Missouri River flows into the Mississippi. 
It was a sleepy-looking place under the French ; but when 




Cincinnati in 1810 
From Howe's Historical Collections. 



Louisiana became an American possession, American settlers 
began to arrive. They built warehouses, laid out streets, and 
gave the town such a bustling air of progress that the French 
inhabitants were shocked and declared that the strangers were 
spoiling their nice old town. 

New Orleans was the most important place in all the West. 
New Here, also, the incoming Americans gave the place a 

Orleans new life of activity. The produce of the interior 
came down to it in great flatboats which could never expect to 



SETTLEMENT OF THE WEST, 1783-1820 



251 



return against the current to the places whence they came. The 
cargoes were sold, and the hulks were taken to pieces and sold as 
lumber. In 1807 Robert Fulton invented the steamboat. It 
was a great thing for the whole world, but an especially great 
thing for New Orleans and the Mississippi valley. Ships could 
now go upstream, carrying manufactured goods to all parts of 
the valley. New Orleans not only received the produce from the 




The Clermont, the First Steamboat 



interior, but began to send back the merchandise the people of the 
interior needed. By 1820 steamboats were running on most of 
the important rivers in the Mississippi valley. They made New 
Orleans the center of a very large trade. 

Thus all the life of this great valley was drawn down to the 
Gulf coast. From New Orleans the produce was shipped to all 
parts of the world. At the same time the merchants its foreign 
of New Orleans imported from Europe the manu- trade 
factured goods that they sold to the people in the interior. It 
seemed to the merchants of the seaboard that the interior trade 



252 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



was likely to be lost to them indefinitely, and they did all they 
could to keep it in their hands. They could never hope to do this 
if they had to send their goods over the mountains in wagons. 




The Cabildo, New Orleans 

Their only hope was to have a cheaper means of transportation 
to the watercourses of the Northwest. 

If you will turn to a map of this region, you will see that nature 
has provided two means of reaching the Northwest by water. 
From Phiia- O^^e is by way of the Ohio River and the many smaller 
deiphia to streams flowing into it. The key of this system is 
itts urg Pittsburg, and the seaboard city that was most con- 
venient to it was Philadelphia, whose merchants set out to build 
a canal to the foot of the Alleghanies, going along the small 
tributaries of the Susquehanna. On the western side of the 
mountains another canal ran along the Monongahela to Pittsburg. 
By this means a water route was secured all the way to the Ohio, 



SETTLEMENT OF THE WEST, 1783-1820 



253 



except for the short distance over the mountain ridge. How 
to get over that ridge was a serious problem. One ingenious man 
suggested that a tunnel be cut through the mountain at the canal 
level, so that the boats might go through, but nobody was willing 
to undertake so long a tunnel. The best that could be done was 
to make a good road over the ridge and trust to wagons. When 




Chicago in 1834 

railroads began to be built, about 1828, it was easy to find a sub- 
stitute for the wagon road. 

The second advantageous way of getting to the watercourses 
of the West was through central New York to the Great Lakes. 
The merchants of New York were interested in this The Erie 
route, for it would deliver to them a very rich trade. ^^"^ 
Governor De Witt Clinton, after much effort, got the New York 
legislature to supply the money for a canal from Albany to Buffalo. 
Thus was begun the Erie Canal, completed, after eight years of 



254 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



labor, in 1825. It runs through a region in which there are no 
mountains, and the water for it comes from the Mohawk River and 
a series of lakes in western and central New York. From Buffalo 
the produce of all the region that touches the Great Lakes can be 




The Erie Canal 



carried to the city of New York at cheap freight rates. Its con- 
struction vastly increased the amount of business done in the city 
of New York. Before that time Philadelphia was the largest 
city in the union, but it now dropped to second place, and although 




Traveling on a Canal Boat, 1825 



its merchants have tried hard to preserve the business of the city, 
the first place has never been recovered. New York became the 
greatest importing city in the union. To it came large stocks 
of merchandise from Europe, and here assembled the Western 



SETTLEMENT OF THE WEST, 1783-1820 255 

merchants to buy the goods they expected to sell in their 
stores. 

One of the most important things for the West was the regula- 
tions by which the government sold the public lands. Before 
the revolution the usual method of selling western Land 
land was to grant them in large tracts to rich men who speculators 
sent agents to Europe or through the older states to sell them in 
small farms. Such men were land speculators, and sometimes 
they made a great deal of money. Washington, Jefferson, and 
many other leading men of the revolutionary period secured large 
tracts of land beyond the mountains, expecting to sell it at a great 
profit. 

This method of selling the public lands pleased the people of 
the East. They did not wish to see the laboring men of their own 
section moving away to the West to get farms at Eastern and 
small prices, since this lessened the supply of labor, western 
They thought that as long as the speculators dealt in i°*®'"®sts 
the lands the prices would be high enough to restrain the poorest 
man from buying them in large quantities. They felt that the 
fairest way to all sections was to sell the lands to people who came 
from Europe. The people of the West wished to have their coun- 
try settled rapidly. They always favored a liberal policy of 
selling the lands. It was not well, they thought, to hold back 
the West to serve the purpose of the East. There are two sides 
of most questions. 

The demands of the West were so strong that in 1796 congress 
made a concession. It passed a law allowing any one to buy 640 
acres or more at two dollars an acre, but no smaller More liberal 
tract would be sold. Hitherto the speculators had ^^^s 
gone to Philadelphia to make purchases, but now two land offices 
at which purchases could be made were opened, one in Pittsburg 
and one in Cincinnati. In 1800 four other land offices were opened 
in the West, and it was provided that a man might buy as small a 
tract as three hundred and twenty acres at two dollars an acre, 



256 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

but the purchaser might have four years to make his payments. 
By this means a poor man might secure a farm and pay for 
it out of the produce he raised on it. These laws led many persons 
to move to the West, and that section began to grow rapidly. 

The credit system encouraged men who were not properly 
settlers to buy land. They were really speculators on a small scale 
Credit sales and hoped that the incoming tide of immigrants would 
abolished raise the price and enable them to sell at a profit before 
they paid their debts to the government. A great deal of such 
land was never paid for. The purchasers continually bought 
more than they could sell, and in 1820 congress made a law 
by which all lands were to be sold for cash. In order to help 
the poor man and to encourage actual settlers the price was fixed 
at one dollar and twenty-five cents an acre and the smallest tract 
that would be sold was eighty acres. A small farm could thus 
be bought for $100, which seemed as much inducement as the 
government ought to offer to any one. 

It was expected that these prices would apply to moderately 
good lands. For the sale of exceptionally fertile tracts another 
Sales at provision was made. When the government decided 
auction to open a given region for sale, notice of an auction 

would be posted, at which land would be offered to the highest 
bidders, none to be sold for less than the regular prices just named. 
All that was not sold in such an auction could be had afterwards 
at the regular prices at a land office. Sometimes the best tracts 
sold for high prices. This was especially true of the rich cotton 
land in Alabama and Mississippi. Such high prices were offered 
by some bidders that the purchasers were not able to make their 
farms yield a profit. But in most cases the auctions were not a 
success. The people knew that all the land could be had for the 
regular price after the auction, and they preferred to take their 
chances under these terms. 

In 1862 the government passed the homestead act, a law more 
favorable to the West than any previously made. This act pro- 



SETTLEMENT OF THE WEST, 1783-1820 



257 



The pioneer 



vided that every actual settler should receive without cost 160 
acres of the public land. To others the price remained one 
dollar and twenty-five cents an acre. It was enacted The home- 
that timber lands should not sell for less than five stead act 
dollars and mineral lands for not less than ten dollars an acre. 

Looking carefully into the history of the Western settlements, 
we see three classes of settlers. The first was the pioneer. He 
was a roving man who did not like to live close to the 
settlements. He always moved on when he found that 
others were beginning to settle near him. He was not a farmer 
but a hunter and trapper. He went through the forests before they 
were well known to white men and was frequently as uncivilized 
as the Indian, in whose wigwam he was a welcome guest. His 
service was to discover the location of the good land, find out how 
the small streams ran, locate the Indian trails, open paths to the 
white man's country, and create in the settlements an interest 
in the particular district which he himself knew. 

After him came 
the squatter. He 
was a The 
farmer squatter 

as well as a hunter. 
He moved into the 
wilderness before 
the government 
opened land for 
sale. He paid no 
attention to land 
offices, for he did 
not intend to buy. 
What he found he 
took, building his 
cabin where he 

liked, and making Home of a squatter 




258 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

a small field that would raise the corn and wheat he needed for food. 
He did not expect to sell his products and raised only what he and 
his family needed. He had no church, school, or government. 
He hunted the deer, wild turkey, bear, and beaver while he was 
not digging in his small field. When the land on which he lived 
was open for sale, he either bought it and became an actual settler, 
or moved to the frontier after selling the buildings and other 
improvements he had made on the land. 

Last of all came the settler, the man who owned his farm and 

got his title from the government. He widened the trails into 

roads, built bridges, enlarged the fields, and formed 

a regular community under the rules of labor, law, and 

sober living. Sawmills now appeared, and the log cabins of the 

earhest settlers began to give place to frame houses. 

Preachers followed the settlers, traveling on horseback and 
carrying their saddlebags filled with Bibles and hymn books. 
Pioneer The first preaching places were the homes of the settlers, 
preachers When a preacher arrived, he would get his host to notify 
the neighbors that a sermon would be preached. Those who 
wished were taken into the church, and perhaps a congregation 
would be formed. Frequently the preacher found in the com- 
munity men and women who had belonged to the church he 
represented. In the settlements of the New Englanders congre- 
gations were organized more quickly than in the places in which 
Southerners and Middle-states men settled. We cannot praise 
too much the earnest work of these early preachers. There was 
a great deal of wild living before they arrived in the settlements, 
but their influence was for gentleness, and the settlers yielded to 
it. The states now began to establish schools ; after them came 
newspapers, and soon universities were founded. 

As the settlements advanced the Indians fell back. In one 
The Indians treaty after another they sold their lands to the govern- 
drivenback ment and confined their hunting trips to the lands 
lying farther west. At first the Indians of the Northwest were in- 



SETTLEMENT OP THE WEST, 1783-1820 259 

clined to oppose the white man's approach. In 1791 they attacked 
Governor St. Clair, of Ohio, and defeated his force with heavy 
loss. The president sent against them a strong force under General 
Wayne, which inflicted such a heavy loss that there were no more 
Indian troubles in Ohio and Indiana. General Jackson's victory 
over the Creeks in 1814 did the same thing for the Indians of the 
Southwest. But there was this peculiarity in the history of the 
southwestern Indians : they were not being continually thrust back 
to the unsettled West. They remained in Georgia and Alabama 
long after the lower Mississippi was settled. They were thus 
surrounded by white settlements, and it was finally a difficult 
thing to get them to give place to white men. Their removal 
was not accomplished until 1835, after there had been many years 
of angry discussion. 

QUESTIONS 

I. In what ways was the period from 1790 to 1820 an era of great 
prosperity ? What was the condition of immigration during these years ? 
In what parts of the region west of the mountains were settlements planted 
in 1783? How far had they extended in 1820? 

II. Into what parts of the interior did the people of the South migrate ? 
Describe the process. What effect did this process have upon the older 
communities? Describe the invention of the cotton gin. What effect 
did it have on the life of the South? What is the cotton-growing part 
of the South? 

III. By what route did the men from the Middle states reach the West? 
What class of men settled the region immediately north of the Ohio? 
What large town was founded there ? 

IV. Describe the migration of the New Englanders. What was Con- 
necticut's Western Reserve? Compare the Hfe in the two zones of settle- 
ment in the region north of the Ohio. Describe the means of travel to the 
West. What was the condition of the roads? Describe the development 
of towns in the West. Explain the development of New Orleans. When 
were steamboats invented? What was their importance to the West? 

V. How did New Orleans threaten to absorb the whole trade of the 
Mississippi valley? How did this affect the trading towns of the Atlantic 
coast ? In what way did they seek to protect themselves ? Describe the 



260 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

efforts of the Philadelphia merchants to reach Pittsburg. Describe the 
construction of the Erie Canal. What effect did it have on the growth 
of New York? 

VI. Describe the methods of the land speculators. Why did the people 
of the East approve the sale of land through speculators? Why did the 
West object to it ? What were the provisions of the law of 1796 ? What 
further changes were made in 1800? What was the effect on the settle- 
ment of the West ? What abuse came through sales on credit ? What 
were the provisions of the law of 1820 ? What plan was adopted to make 
the best land bring better prices than poorer land? How did it work? 
Describe the homestead act of 1862. 

VII. What three classes of settlers do we find in most Western com- 
munities? Describe each class. Describe the arrival of the pioneer 
preachers. What influence did they have? How did the settlements of 
the New Englanders differ from other settlements in this respect? 

VIII. What happened to the Indians during this period? What two 
Indian wars broke their power ? Why was the case of the southwestern 
Indians different from that of the Indians north of the Ohio ? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

Western Roads and Travel ; The Invention of the Cotton Gin ; Early 
Use of Steamboats ; The Erie Canal ; General Wayne's War against the 
Indians ; The Removal of the Cherokees. 



1 



CHAPTER XIX 



THE GOVERNMENT 



UNDER THE 
1811-1825 



LATER REPUBLICANS, 



We must now turn again to political history, in order to see 
how the country took up its life when the war of 1812 was over. 
The republicans were still in control of the government The new 
and Madison was president. The "war hawks" were republicans 
at the head of the party, and the old republicans gave them support 
rather than have a quarrel within party ranks. The war had 
taught the country some lessons. We were no longer afraid to 
have an army and 
navy, and we were 
willing to take any 
other steps which 
seemed necessary to 
carry on the govern- 
ment in an effective 
way. 

Meanwhile the fed- 
eralists were growing 
weaker every The Hart- 
year. The ford con 
thing which ^^''^°" 
injured them most 
was the Hartford 
convention, which 
met late in 1814. 
They were most nu- 




Wher. 

261 



The Old State House 
the Hartford conveation met. 



262 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

merous in New England, and as the war progressed they opposed 
it strongly. They did not wish to send troops to help carry 
it on, and they declared openly that it was an unjust and un- 
wise war. Finally the states of Massachusetts, Connecticut, and 
Rhode Island sent delegates to a convention at Hartford to take 
steps in regard to the situation. The convention met in secret, 
and it is not known what the members really intended to do ; but 
most people believed it was called to induce the New England 

states to leave the union and 
join England. We ought not 
to suspect what we cannot 
prove. It is certain that none 
of the measures announced by 
the convention were as bad as 
its opponents charged. 

The republicans had no seri- 
ous opposition in the presi- 
Theeiec- dential election of 
tionofi8i6 1816, Their only 
trouble was to decide which 
republican thej'^ would support. 
The new leaders were young 
men and they did not push 

James Monroe <• i i i n 

themselves forward very boldly. 
It was agreed that all should support Monroe, an old republican 
whom men knew for a gentle but industrious man. He was not 
likely to oppose the new republicans, and when he had served 
through his term, it would be time enough to think of bringing 
one of them forward. James Monroe was elected president and 
Daniel D. Tompkins, of New York, was elected vice-president. 

One of the first acts of congress after the war related to the de- 
Measures fense of the nation. It provided for a larger army than 
of defense the old republicans thought necessary. It also en- 
larged the courses at the academy at West Point, which was now 




GOVERNMENT UNDER THE LATER REPUBLICANS 263 

made a regular military school in which officers studied military 
science. It was believed that we ought to have at all times a 
well-instructed body oi army officers who might train the private 
soldiers when war began. Another law provided for an increase 
in the navy. It was not until 1845 that the naval academy was 
founded at Annapolis to train naval officers. 

Another measure was to create a second Bank of the United 
States to do the work of the old bank, which had gone out of 
existence in 1811. The old republicans had disliked the first 
bank, which was one of Hamilton's ideas. But they The need for 
now said little, for it was evident that the country a great bank 
had suffered sadly during the war because it had no such insti- 
tution. A bank was needed for two main reasons. One was to 
furnish a safe and convenient place in which the government could 
keep its money from the time it was collected until it was needed 
for government expenses. The other reason was even more im- 
portant. It was the need of a great bank whose notes would be 
received at par by the whole countrJ^ A great many small and un- 
safe banks were then in existence* whose notes were offered in 
every market as money. No one knew what they were worth, and, 
in fact, they varied widely in value. If there was a central bank, 
in which the government had a part, its notes would be wisely 
issued, and they would furnish a currency acceptable to all parts of 
the country. 

The new bank was chartered in 1836. It was to keep the govern- 
ment money in its vaults, and could lend that part which was not 
in active use. This was a valuable thing for the bank. , 

Its iifl.ttir6 

It paid a bonus of $1,500,000 for the privilege, but 
the interest it received on government deposits was much more than 
the amount of the bonus. The bank had its headquarters in 
Philadelphia, but it had branches in many other cities. 

Another measure that the new republicans carried through 
congress was our first protective tariff. Before that time the 
government had obtained most of its money from tariff bills ; but 



264 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

they were always passed to get money. In 1816 congress passed 
a tariff bill in which high duties were laid on things manufactured 
First pro- in the United States. This would make it necessary 
tective for merchants who imported those articles to sell them 

tanff higher than thej^ were selling before. Woolen cloth, 

for example, was now to sell higher than before, and by this means 
the American manufacturer could sell a little cheaper than the 
foreign manufacturer and still have a profit. The American fac- 
tory owners urged congress to pass this bill to protect them. They 
had established factories during the war and declared that they 
would have to close them if they had to compete with cheap British 
goods. Their argument seemed a good one, and the people gen- 
e'rall}^ approved of the protective tariff. In order to help the newly 
established manufacturers, they were willing to pay higher prices 
for the goods they needed. All parts of the country united in 
voting for this bill. 

The manufacturers soon discovered that they needed more 
protection and asked congress for still higher duties. Now ap- 
Morepro- peared opposition to higher protection. The South 
taction de- especially showed that it was opposed to more protection 
™^" ^ than had already been given. It did not have manu- 

facturers, and probably would not have them for a long time. To 
increase the duties, therefore, only meant that the South must pay 
higher prices in order to aid the manufacturing parts of the North. 
We shall see how this led at a later time to a great deal of hard 
feeling. 

A fourth matter which the new republicans undertook to 
carry through congress was what was known as a policy of internal 
Internal im- improvements. It meant that the federal government 
provements -^as to construct roads and canals, for which there was 
then a great demand. Many of the old states were building 
their own roads and canals, but the newer states were thinly 
settled and could not construct such public works. They wished 
congress to take up the task and pointed out that if there were 



GOVERNMENT UNDER THE LATER REPUBLICANS 265 

good means of travel in the West, the government could sell the 
public lands at a more rapid rate and at higher prices. The reply 
was that the constitution did not give congress power to collect 
money to spend in building up one part of the country at the 
expense of the other. It was also thought that if congress began 
to make such grants, it would be overwhelmed with similar demands. 

Government aid to roads began several years before the war of 
1812, but the requests were not large, and most of them were 
granted. Many men shook their heads and said that The bonus 
the demands would get larger and larger. After the ^iU 
war the new republicans showed that they meant to take up the 
subject as a regular policy. In 1816 one of them, Calhoun, intro- 
duced a bill to set aside the bonus of $1,500,000 received from the 
national bank as an investment, the interest from which was to be 
used for internal improvements. Both houses of congress passed 
the bill, but Madison, whose term of office had not yet expired, 
vetoed it because he thought the constitution did not author- 
ize congress to spend money in such a way. For some years the 
demand for internal improvements was checked, although money 
was given by congress in small sums for many roads and canals. 

Monroe wished to have the leading new repubhcans in his cabi- 
net, and John Quincy Adams, of Massachusetts, became secretary 
of state ; Crawford, of Georgia, secretary of the treas- Monroe and 
ury ; and Calhoun, secretary of war. Clay was offered Clay 
a place also, but refused. He preferred to stay in congress and lead 
those who were sure to appear as opponents of the president's 
plans. He was a brilliant debater and had great influence as 
speaker of the house of representatives. He watched for something 
to criticize, but Monroe was very cautious. While he did not do 
many great things, he rarely did foolish things, and Clay was not 
able to find good ground for building up a party in opposition. 
In 1820 everybody was satisfied with Monroe, and he was re- 
elected president with only one opposing vote. The presidential 
elector who cast that vote explained that he was satisfied with 



266 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



Monroe, but that he voted against him so that the election would 
not be unanimous. Washington is the only president who has 
been unanimously elected, and the elector said he did not propose 

to let Monroe have the 
same honor. These har- 
monious years of Monroe 
were called the "era of 
good feeling." 

One of the good things 
JNIonroe did was to buy 
The desire Florida from 
for Florida Spain. We 
desired this territory be- 
cause it would round out 
our possession on the 
coast from Maine to the 
western boundary of 
Louisiana. It was worth 
little to Spain, who at this 
time was gradually losing 
her colonies in America. 
They had revolted one 
after the other and she 
was not able to reconquer them. Florida was a great stretch of 
forest containing a few fortified posts held by garrisons. Around 
the oldest posts one might see plantations, but the rest of the 
country was unsettled. Its few inhabitants were not able to 
defend it without help from over the sea. The people of the 
United States kept sharp eyes on the territory ; for they thought 
the time would come when they might dash across the boundary 
line and conquer all Florida. Monroe, however, preferred to buy it. 
He tried hard to get the Spanish government to sell the province, 
but for many months the efforts were not successful. Then came 
an incident which seems to have opened the eyes of the Spaniards. 




John Quincy Adams 



GOVERNMENT UNDER THE LATER REPUBLICANS 267 

Many of the Creeks were in Florida, having fled thither after 
they were defeated by Jackson, at Horseshoe Bend, in 1814. They 
took refuge with the Seminoles, a kindred tribe. They Beginning of 
did not accept the treaty Jackson made after the battle, the Semi- 
by which the Creeks ceded a broad belt of land just °°^® ^*^ 
north of the Florida boundary. They continued to look on the 
land as their own, and when white settlers began to establish 
homes on it, the Creeks crossed the Florida line, stole the stock 
of the settlers, and sometimes killed the white men whom they met. 
The whites retaliated, one thing led to another, and late in 1817 
there was war on the border. 

General Jackson was sent to put down the disturbances. He 
found that the Indians had fled into Florida and pursued them 
into that territory, regardless of the fact that he was jackson in 
marching into Spain's territory. The Indians fled into Florida 
the forest. He burned their towns and destroyed their grain. 
When he was told that the Spaniards had furnished arms and 
ammunition to the Seminoles he seized the garrisons, hoisted the 
American flag, and sent the captured soldiers to Havana. 

Spain was greatly offended, and declared that she would not say 
another word about selling Florida until the American troops 
were withdrawn and Jackson was punished for what he Spain en- 
had done. Monroe handled the matter with great ^^s^^ 
cleverness. The American troops were recalled, and Florida was 
handed back to Spain. This could be done in all fairness, since 
Jackson had acted on his own responsibility in seizing the forts. 
But he was not punished. Monroe pointed out that since Spain 
would not restrain the Seminoles from raiding on American lands, 
she had no right to complain if we went into her own territory and 
punished the offenders. Spain could not dispute the argument. 
Moreover, a year's reflection showed her that since she could not 
defend her province she had better sell it. In February, 
1819, she agreed to a treaty in which we acquired all 
Florida. A feature of tliis important treaty was that the western 



268 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

boundary of Louisiana was fixed at the Sabine River. Beyond it 
was Mexico, still a Spanish colony. 

The Missouri compromise was one of two other important events 
occurring while Monroe was president. It decided that a part of 
Twoimpor- the territory purchased under the name Louisiana 
tant events should be Opened to slavery, and a part should not be so 
opened. The incident belongs to the story of the slavery contro- 
versy, and it will be described in another chapter (see p. 292). The 
other incident was the announcement of the Monroe doctrine in 1823. 

The first suggestion of this important matter came from Can- 
ning, England's foreign secretary. At that time Spain had just 
Origin of gonc through a revolution in which the people had set 
the Monroe vip a republic, but a French army had come into the 
doctrine country and restored the king. He had no money to 
pay for this service, but it was proposed that he should allow France 
to pay herself by seizing some of her revolting Spanish colonies. 
Most of the European governments were willing for France to do 
this, and France herself was pleased at the prospect of reestablish- 
ing colonies in America. England, however, did not like the 
prospect. She had given much secret aid to the revolting 
colonies, and in return for it she expected that they would prove 
a market for British goods. As these colonies were not likely 
to have manufactures of their own it was most probable that 
they would trade with Great Britain for many years. 

It was at this point that Canning's important suggestion came 
across the Atlantic. Let the United States, he said, join England 
Canning's in an announcement that the two nations would not 
suggestion allow any European power to establish a colonial em- 
pire in America. Monroe had recognized the revolting Spanish 
colonies as independent states. He knew, also, that they had the 
sympathy of the American people. He saw that if a great French 
power was built up in Mexico or in Central America, we might 
have trouble to get on with it. For all these reasons he was pleased 
at Canning's suggestion, and was for acceptance. 



GOVERNMENT UNDER THE LATER REPUBLICANS 269 

But Secretary Adams gave him a valuable hint. If there was 
to be an announcement, said he, why should Canning make it? 
We were the nation most interested, and it was for us . 

' America 

to make the announcement. Adams added that he takes lead- 
did not like to see his country " come in like a cock-boat ing place 
in the wake of the British man-of-war." Canning was not dis- 
pleased at this turn of the affair. He was chiefly interested in 
preserving British trade, and he did not care who spoke first. 
The trade advantages to Great Britain would be the same in 
either case. 

The announcement was made in the president's message to con- 
gress, December, 1823. It declared that we would not stand by 
and see a European power impose its system of govern- Monroe 
ment on any of the American governments. Monroe doctrine 
said: "With the existing colonies or dependencies of any Euro- 
pean power we have not interfered, and shall not interfere. But 
with the governments who have declared their independence, and 
maintained it, and whose independence we have, on great con- 
sideration and on just principles, acjcnowledged, we could not view 
any interposition for the purpose of oppressing them, or controlling 
in any other manner their destiny by any European power, in any 
other hght than as a manifestation of an unfriendly disposition to- 
ward the United States." 

The meaning of these words was clear. Our government was a 
democracy, just the opposite of the despotism that then ruled 
in all the old world countries except Great Britain and Switzerland. 
It meant that we would fight before we would see these despotic 
countries get a foothold in America. This was the 
famous Monroe doctrine. When France knew what ^ 

stand Monroe had taken and realized that England would support 
us in it, she gave up all hope of taking territory in America. It 
cannot be doubted that the Monroe doctrine has saved from 
extinction some of the states south of us. 

The year 1824 was an election year, and several candidates 



270 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

wished to succeed Monroe. In fact, the "era of good feehng" 
was turning into a hard fight between those who had formerly 
The election been Monroe's friends. Adams, Crawford, Calhoun, 
of 1824 Clay, and General Jackson were the most prominent 

candidates. When the election was over, it was seen that nobody 
had a majority of the electoral votes. In such a case the constitu- 
tion directs that the election shall be decided by the house of 
representatives, who must choose one of the three men who had 
the highest votes in the election. 

Now followed a state of rivalry among the friends of the three 
highest candidates, Jackson, Adams, and Crawford. Clay was 
The election very popular in the house of representatives, and al- 
of 1825 though he was not one of the three, he was able to have 

much influence over the final choice. He favored Adams, who was 
more experienced in public life than Jackson, and Adams was 
elected. Crawford had been left nearly helpless by a stroke of 
paralysis, and it was not wise to make him president in his 
existing state of health. Adams made Clay his secretary of state. 
It was a good choice, but immediately the friends of Jackson 
raised a cry of corrupt bargain. Clay, they said, made Adams 
president, and Adams made Clay the chief man in the cabinet. 
It is evident that Clay had a perfect right to think that Adams 
was the right man for president, and Adams in making Clay 
secretary of state took for that office the best man among his 
supporters. 

John Quincy Adams was president only four years (1825-1829), 
for he was not fortunate enough to get a reelection. He was very 
conscientious, and tried hard to make a good president, but he did 
Adams and not know the art of making friends, and he became more 
Jackson and more unpopular as the years passed. He had the 
support of New England, and most of the old federalists voted for 
him. He was also supported by most of the Clay men, but he had 
very few warm admirers. His strongest opponent in 1825 had 
been Jackson, who was now supported by those who formerly 



GOVERNMENT UNDER THE LATER REPUBLICANS 271 



favored Crawford and Calhoun. Jackson was a popular hero. 
He was liked because he had won victories over the British at 
New Orleans. He was an outspoken man, whom the people 
believed very honest. 

Jackson's supporters attacked Adams in every possible way. 
They called him an aristocrat, and said the government was no 
longer in the hands of the people. 
They said he placed none but his 
own friends in office, an The bitter 
accusation which was attack on 
not true. They made ^^^"^^ 
the people at large believe that it 
was necessary to turn out Adams 
in order that government by the 
people might be restored. The 
result was that Jackson was elected 
president in 1828 by a large major- 
ity. The important events of 
Adams's administration were the* 
tariff of 1828 (see p. 277), the 
Panama congress, and the reappear- 
ance of the strict and loose con- 
struction theories of the union. 

The Panama congress was called 
at the invitation of the state of 
Colombia, in South America. It 
was to meet to consider matters relating to the states north 
and south of the isthmus, and the United States were invited to 
attend. Clay was eager that Adams should send dele- Panama 
gates. He liked to think of our influence going out to congress 
the other parts of the continents. He thought that since we 
should be the greatest power at Panama we should be able to get 
the smaller states to do as we wished. Adams was more cautious. 
He hesitated, but finally appointed delegates when he was 




Andrew Jackson 
At the time he was president. 



272 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

assured that they would not bind us to fight the battles of other 
states. 

When the Panama congress met, our delegates had not sailed. 
They were waiting for Congress to vote the money to pay their 
expenses. Adams reported what he had done, and 
asked for the necessary funds. Immediately arose a 
storm of criticism from the Jackson men. The Panama congress 
was denounced at every possible point, and the debate that ensued 
was so long that although the money was voted, the delegates 
arrived at Panama too late to take part in the congress. One of 
them died on the way to Panama, and the other came home without 
accomplishing anything. The Panama congress gave the oppo- 
nents of Adams an opportunity to show how strong they were. 
It was said that Adams would not have lost if he had only taken 
the other side of the question. 

About this time much began to be said about loose construction 
and strict construction. The latter meant that we should follow 
Constitu- the words of the constitution very strictly in deciding 
tionai con- upon the powers of congress, and the former meant that 
struction ^^^ should interpret the words of the constitution liber- 
ally, or loosely. For example, the constitution says that congress 
shall lay taxes "to pay the debts, and provide for the common 
defense and general welfare of the United States." The ques- 
tion came up: Do the words "general welfare" apply to any 
policy congress may choose to approve, or do they mean any 
small and unforeseen expenses that the government may en- 
counter in its career. Some persons wished to give the words a 
strict meaning, and some thought they should be interpreted 
liberally. The strict constructionists contended that a pro- 
tective tariff is not authorized in the constitution. The loose 
constructionists replied that a protective tariff is for the "general 
welfare," and therefore congress has a right to levy it. 

The Adams men were loose constructionists generally, and 
the Jackson men were divided between strict constructionists and 



GOVERNMENT UNDER THE LATER REPUBLICANS 273 

men who did not care one way or the other. One of the ideas of 
the strict constructionists was that all the powers which 
are not given to the federal government in clear and 
positive words of the constitution are to be retained by the states. 
When strict construction assumes this form, it is called the doctrine 
of state rights. Opposed to it is the doctrine of a strong federal 
government, sometimes known as the doctrine of nationalism. 
The Adams men of 1828 may be called nationahsts and the Jack- 
son men were turning toward the doctrine of state rights. 

In reality, two new parties were now forming. Adams ceased 
to be his party's head after the election of 1828, and Henry Clay 
took his place. He was a loose constructionist and a New parties; 
nationalist, and the party he led became known after i- Whigs 
some years as the whig party. Adams acted with it, but a more 
important man than he was Daniel Webster, of Massachusetts, 
whose great distinction was his oratory. He is considered by most 
men the greatest American orator. 

The supporters of Jackson felt the necessity of taking a new 
party name. They held as long as possible to the name republican, 
which Jefferson made popular. But that did not mark 2. Demo- 
them clearly enough, and after a short period of doubt "ats 
they began to call themselves democrats. The whig and demo- 
cratic parties were for twenty years the great American parties. 
Clay founded the first and Jackson the second. The whigs in all 
this time elected only two presidents, Harrison, in 1840, and 
Taylor, in 1848. Both died in office. All the other elected presi- 
dents from Jackson to Lincoln were democrats. 



QUESTIONS 

I. What group of politicians were in control when the war of 1812 
ended? What was their purpose? What was the condition of the re- 
pubhcan party ? What was the attitude of New England toward the war 
just ended ? What do we know about the Hartford convention ? What is 
charged but not proved about it? Describe the election of 1816. 

T 



274 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

II. What measures of defense were carried through congress by the 
practical republicans? Why was a great bank needed? Why was the 
privilege of keeping the public money a valuable one? 

III. When was the first protective tariff bill passed? What was the 
nature of the tariff bills passed before that year? Why did the manu- 
facturers think they needed protection? What parts of the country 
favored the bill? What was the attitude of the manufacturers after the 
first law was passed? Why did the South object? 

IV. What was the policy of internal improvements? Why was appeal 
made to congress in such cases? What objection was made to the 
policy? What was the bonus bill? What was its fate? Who was its 
champion ? 

V. What efforts did Monroe make to preserve harmony among the 
republicans? What attitude did Clay take? In what way did Monroe 
disappoint his expectations? Describe the election of 1820. What was 
the "era of good feeling"? 

VI. Why did we wish to acquire Florida? Describe the condition of 
the province under Spain. What expectation was entertained by Ameri- 
cans? What was Monroe's pohcy? What caused the Seminoles to begin 
their attacks on the whites? What did Jackson accomplish in Florida? 
What demands did Spain make? How did Monroe treat them? What 
at last induced Spain to sell Florida? What were the terms of the 
sale? 

VII. Name two other important occurrences in Monroe's administra- 
tion. What events in Europe led up to the Monroe doctrine? Why did 
England oppose the plan to reconquer the Spanish colonies? What was 
Canning's suggestion? How did Monroe receive it? What caution did 
Adams show? How was the Monroe doctrine announced? Give its 
substance. What effect did it have on France? 

VIII. Describe the election of 1824. Describe the election of 1825. 
What do you think about the charge that a corrupt bargain was made? 
What kind of president did Adams make? What factions now united 
in support of Jackson? Why was Jackson popular? In what manner 
did his friends attack Adams ? What was the result of the election of 
1828? 

IX. Describe the summons to the Panama congress. What were the 
attitudes of Clay and Adams toward the congress? Describe the debate 
in congress over the Panama delegates. What was the outcome ? What 
was the poUtical effect of the incident ? 

X. What is the difference between "loose" and "strict" construction 
of the constitution ? Give illustrations. What was the doctrine of state 



GOVERNMENT UNDER THE LATER REPUBLICANS 275 

rights? What two new parties were forming? How did they divide on 
the question of construction? How many presidential elections did the 
whigs win? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Seminole War ; Clay's Opposition to Monroe ; The Monroe 
Doctrine ; The Charge of Bargain and Corruption ; The Effects of the 
Tariff, North and South ; Jackson as Governor of Florida. 



CHAPTER XX 
THE GOVERNMENT UNDER JACKSON AND VAN BUREN 

Andrew Jackson was president for two terms, 1829-1837, and 
after him came his friend, Martin Van Buren, who was president 
Jackson's for one term, until 1841. Jackson was a man of great 
power determination, and his enemies in derision spoke of this 

period as the "reign of Andrew Jackson." He had power because a 
majority of the people had confidence in him. 

His supporters were generally the small farmers and country 
people. Most of the rich men in the cities and the large land- 
The spoils owners were whigs. Jackson's followers believed that 
system fhe government under Adams had fallen into the hands 

of aristocrats. They demanded that the old officeholders should 
be dismissed to make room for men whom they called "friends 
of the people." Therefore under Jackson there was a great chang- 
ing of officers. Many ignorant men were put into office merely 
because they had worked for the election of Jackson. The idea 
that offices should be used to reward faithful party workers was 
called the "spoils system." For many years it was a very bad 
feature of our public affairs. 

One of the first things Jackson did was to give a blow to the 
policy of internal improvements. He thought congress was not 
Against in- authorized by the constitution to spend money for 
ternaiim- roads and canals which were purely local in character. 
provements j^ seemed to him that the people of the states were try- 
ing to get the federal government to do what they themselves 
should do. Each year more and more pressure was brought to 
bear on congress, and he feared that the demands for help would 

276 



GOVERNMENT UNDER JACKSON AND VAN BUREN 277 



become so great that a large part of the revenue would be required 
to meet them. Jackson felt that the process ought to stop. When 
a bill to aid what was known as the Maysville road came to him 
after passing both houses of congress, he vetoed it and gave out his 
reasons in words that won the support of the people. The Mays- 
ville road began and ended in Kentucky and was, therefore, a local 
road. 

Another important matter that belongs to Jackson's adminis- 
tration is the adjustment of the 
tariff question. After the pas- 
sage of the bill of a growing 

1816 there was con- tariff 
tinual demand for higher rates. 
An important bill was passed 
in 1824, another in 1828, and 
still another in 1832. There 
was much dissatisfaction in the 
South on account of these laws. 
They gave protection to the 
North, but the South was forced 
to pay higher prices for many 
articles in order that the North 
might have this advantage. 
If it was said that the South 
might have had as much benefit 
as the North if she had estab- 
lished manufactures herself, 
the reply would be the South 
was an agricultural region and could not well have manufactures. 
The slave labor of the South could not be used profitably in 
factories. 

Most of the Southern states were against the tariff, but South 
Carolina was most outspoken in her opposition. Each step in 
building up the high tariff policy of the nation was received in 




John C. Calhoun 



278 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

this state with an outburst of indignation. The people were 
Opposition thoroughly convinced that the constitution gave no 
of South power to congress to make a law which bore un- 
Caroiina equally on a large part of the union. But it was hard 
for any one to suggest a means of defeating the tariff men until 
John C. Calhoun came forward with a plan. 

This strong leader was originally the most national of the 
new republicans. But as his own state turned to the state rights 
policy he turned with her. He could not afford to 
stand out against what a very large majority of his 
fellow South Carohnians wished ; and from 1828 he was the leader 
of the state rights and strict construction men of the South. All 
these were opposed to a protective tariff on principle. 

His argument against the tariff men was as follows : the federal 
government, of which congress is a part, was created by the states. 
The nuiii- ^^^ ^^^^ power it has it got from the states. The consti- 
fication tution, whicli was made by the states, is the document 

doctnne jj^ which are laid down the powers of the federal govern- 
ment. When that government does something which the consti- 
tution does not authorize, it is proper for the states to refuse to 
obey it. And it was for the states and not for the federal govern- 
ment to say whether or not the constitution was violated in any 
law of congress. Applying this to the case before the country at 
that time, South Caj'olina, in the words of Calhoun, announced 
that the tariff laws were not authorized by the constitution, and 
that South Carolina had a right to say that they should not be en- 
forced within her borders. The theory that a state could nullify 
an act of congress by declaring it unconstitutional was called 
nullification. It was similar in some respects to the ideas in the 
Virginia and Kentucky resolutions of 1798. The doctrine of 
nullification was very fully stated by Calhoun, first in 1828, and 
later in 1832. We shall see by what means Webster became the 
great opponent of it. 

The South Carolinians were confident that Jackson would not 



GOVERNMENT UNDER JACKSON AND VAN BUREN 279 



oppose them. He was a Southern man, a resident of Tennessee, 
and a cotton planter ; and they thought he would surely Jackson's 
help them in their attack on the protective tariff. But attitude 
Jackson was first of all loyal to the union and the constitution ; 
and he did not propose to sit idly by and see a state flout the laws 
of congress, laws he had sworn to enforce. It was at a dinner in 
Washington to celebrate Jefferson's birthday, April 15, 1830, that 
he let it be known where he stood. He was asked to give a toast 
and responded with these words : 
"The federal union : it must be 
preserved!" Calhoun and 
many other nullifiers were pres- 
ent and were much disap- 
pointed with the toast. They 
now knew that Jackson would 
oppose them if they attempted 
to nullify the tariff laws. 

Another quarter to which the 
nullifiers looked for help was 
the other Southern states, all 
of whom were given to agricul- 
ture and felt the burden of the 
tariff as much as South Caro- 
lina. But they were not ready 
at that time to resist the national authority, and The other 
they knew that Jackson would make war if the laws Southern 
were resisted. So the South Carolinians were left to ^*^*^^ 
try nullification through their own efforts, if it was put into 
force at all. 

In January, 1830, the South Carolina idea came up in a most 
conspicuous way in the United States senate. Senator Hayne, 
of South Carolina, a polished and popular orator, was Hayne's 
making a speech on the land question. The Western clever move 
people were still complaining that the manufacturing states of 




Robert Y. Hayne 



280 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



the East adopted a niggardly policy in selling the public land. 
Hayne thought he could make the Western people friends of the 
South Carolina theory. He spoke of the unfairness of allowing a 
majority in congress to make laws for their own advantage at 
the expense of the minority. Then he announced a plan that 
would protect the minority. It was nullification, as good to 

protect the West in regard to 
the sale of the public land as to 
protect the South from a tariff 
law. If the West took up nulli- 
fication, it would be a great gain 
for South Carolina. 

Hayne 's speech was well re- 
ceived by his friends. But it 
alarmed the North, who turned 
Webster's to Daniel Webster 
great reply of Massachusetts for 
a reply. They were not disap- 
pointed ; for Webster's speech 
in reply to Hayne was probably 
the greatest speech ever made 
in congress. The keynote was 
the union. The people, said 
Webster, and not the states 
made the union. It was a 
consolidated government, not a government depending on the wills 
of the states. If a state resisted the will of the federal government, 
it would be treason and its resistance must be put down by force, if 
necessary. He said that the doctrine of nullification was absurd. 
If South Carolina might declare the tariff laws null, another state 
might declare null any law that did not please it. The result of 
such a condition would be that we should have a government 
which could make no law without first finding out how the 
states liked it. If this idea were to prevail, the union, he said, 




Daniel Webster 



GOVERNMENT UNDER JACKSON AND VAN BUREN 281 

would become "a rope of sand." The speech gave joy in the 
North. 

South CaroHna now stood alone, fighting against the high tariff 
policy of the majority. Her weapon was nullification, and the 
president and the other Southern states would have Two years of 
nothing to do with it. Would she really try to enforce hesitation 
it by her unaided efforts? Her people were greatly aroused and 
were convinced that they were right. They hesitated for two 
years after the Hayne-Webster debate, not because they were 
afraid, but because they hoped that a new president might be 
elected in 1832. When they found that Jackson was to be his 
own successor, they decided to try to put nullification into force. 

They called a state convention to take up the matter. It was 
warmly supported by the people of South Carolina and did all 
that the leaders expected of it. One thing was to de- jackson's 
clare that congress had no right to make the recent proclama- 
tariff acts and to order that they should not be en- ^°^ 
forced after February 1, 1833. President Jackson saw that the 
laws were likely to be defied and' issued a proclamation warning 
the people of South Carolina that what they proposed to do was 
treason and that he would enforce the laws against them. 

The reply of the nullifiers was : Let congress make a tariff' that 
will bear fairly on all, and nullification will be given up. Both 
sides were ready for the worst, and to many persons it clay's 
seemed that war was certain to begin. Peace came compromise 
through congress, under the leadership of Clay. Through his 
influence a law was passed by which the duties were to be lowered 
slightly each year for ten years, when they were to remain sta- 
tionary at a moderate rate. Through the slow reduction of the 
duties the manufacturers had time to adjust their selling prices; 
and Clay persuaded them to be satisfied with the compromise in 
order to avoid civil war. The passage of his bill pleased the men of 
South Carolina, and nothing more was heard of nullification. 

As soon as nullification was disposed of Jackson turned his at- 



282 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

tention to the Bank of the United States. Many reasons have 
Jackson's been given for his disHke for this bank; perhaps the 
dislike of best is that he dishked all monopolies, and the bank was 
the bank gQ |-,jg ^j-^g^^ |^g thought it was a peril to the political life 
of the country. He thought that its notes, which were used as 
money in large quantities, were not a satisfactory currency, and 
that the government deposits were not safe in its hands. 

Most of the business men of the country were satisfied with 
the bank. It was" in a sound financial condition, its notes were 
Was it sood, the people of the whole country were glad to 

justified ? receive them as money, and the public funds which were 
deposited with the bank were perfectly safe. It does not seem 
that the bank took a large part in politics, as the democrats 
charged ; but it is certain that it took part against Jackson in 
some states and that it might have come to take a larger part in 
the course of time. The only sound criticism against it is that it 
was a very big institution that was continually tempted to try to 
influence the action of the government, and that such an institu- 
tion may become a bad influence in the politics of the country. 
It was probably on this ground* that the majority of the people 
supported all that the president did against it. 

Jackson's attacks on the bank began in a mild way, in 1829, 
soon after he became president. The charter under which it 
A new char- existed was to expire in 1836, and he wanted to show the 
ter vetoed people that it ought not to be renewed. In 1832 con- 
gress passed a bill to renew the charter. Jackson vetoed it. This 
was in the summer of the year in which there was a presidential 
election. Jackson was the democratic candidate for reelection. 
Clay, a friend of the bank, was the whig candidate. Thus there 
was a clear contest between an opponent and a friend of the bank, 
and it was felt that the election would show how the people stood 
on the bank question. When, therefore, the election went for 
Jackson by a large majority, he concluded that he had the support 
of the people and prepared to destroy the bank. 



GOVERNMENT UNDER JACKSON AND VAN BUREN 283 

His plan was to remove the government deposits from the bank. 
He did not do this all at once ; for he knew that the bank had lent 
the money to private borrowers and it would cause Removal of 
these borrowers much distress to pay at one time all the deposits 
they owed. When banks lend money, most of it goes to merchants, 
manufacturers, and other business men. To pay a large part of 
this money suddenly means that these merchants, manufacturers, 
and others must take the money out of their various enterprises, 
and that means they must do less business. All this makes what 
are known as "hard times." As it was, Jackson's action made 
it necessary for the bank to call in so much of the money it had lent 
that there was serious suffering by all classes. He was much criti- 
cized by the business men, but he held firmly to his decision, and the 
year 1836 came and went without another bill in congress to re- 
charter the bank. Thus, the bank died because its charter ex- 
pired. The whigs resented Jackson's course, and let it be known 
that if they came into power again, they would have another Bank 
of the United States. 

While Jackson was president We had serious trouble with the 
Indians. The Creeks and Cherokees lived in Georgia and Ala- 
bama, while west of these, and nearer the Mississippi, ^he south- 
lived the Chickasaws and Choctaws, all large tribes, western 
Georgia and Alabama were anxious to get the Indians Indians 
out of their bounds, so that the lands on which the savages lived 
might be settled by whites. These Indians were more advanced 
in civilization than most tribes, but they were still far below the 
level of the whites. They had their own tribal government, and 
although they lived within a state they were not subject to its laws. 

Georgia and Alabama thought it unfair that they should be 
forced to have these separate Indian governments within their 
bounds, something that was expected of no other gov- Georgia and 
ernment. They began to make laws for dissolving the the Chero- 
tribal governments. The Cherokees appealed to the ®^^ 
supreme court of the United States which decided in their favor ; 



284 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

but Jackson was in sympathy with Georgia and would not execute 
the verdict of the supreme court. He was much criticized by the 
many persons who felt that the verdict of the supreme court ought 
to be final, but he gave no heed to his critics. He let the Indians 
know that he would not restrain Georgia from taking their lands, 
and advised them to move west of the Mississippi, where congress, 
at his suggestion, set aside a large amount of land for 
them. The Indians finally decided to follow his advice. 
The federal government paid them for the lands they gave up. 

It was in this connection that congress created the Indian Terri- 
tory, properly not a territory. It was a large district staked out 
Indian in the rich valley of the Arkansas River, in which the 

territory Greeks, Cherokees, Chickasaws, and Ghoctaws were 
settled on reservations lying side by side. Each tribe had its own 
government, but there was no territorial government over them, 
as in the normal territory. A few years later the Seminoles were 
also removed to the Territory. These five groups of Indians 
constituted what later became known as the five civilized tribes. 
They are to-day the most advanced Indians within the limits of 
the United States. 

The removal of the Seminoles was the cause of much trouble. 
It happened that many negro slaves had run away and taken ref- 
Removai of ^^S^ with the Seminoles in Florida. Some of them had 
the Semi- married Indians, and were well treated by the Seminoles. 
noies When the tribe agreed to remove to the Indian Terri- 

tory, 1833, these fugitives became alarmed. Their former owners 
naturally expected to recover them and hold them as slaves. The 
fugitives preferred to fight rather than go back to slavery, and they 
joined with some of the Seminoles in a war against removal. Their 
leader was Osceola, a brave chieftain, whose wife was a daughter 
of an escaped slave. She was treacherously arrested, and her 
husband went on the warpath at the head of the discontented ones. 
He and his bands lived in the swamps, sallied out and attacked the 
white settlements, and escaped before they could be captured. 



GOVERNMENT UNDER JACKSON AND VAN BUREN 285 

This fierce struggle was waged from 1835 to 1837, when Osceola 
was seized by the white soldiers at a conference held under a flag 
of truce. He was sent to prison and died a year later in confine- 
ment. The Seminoles continued the war, and it was not until 
1842 that the last resistance was overcome. Most of the tribe now 
left Florida, but a small remnant were allowed to stay in the 
Everglades. 

A less important Indian war was what was known as the 
"Black Hawk war," which began in 1830. Most of the Sac 
Indians crossed the Mississippi River as the Indians were being 
pushed slowly westward in the Northwest. But one Black Hawk 
branch settled in the valley of the Rock River, where ^^ 
the land was very fertile. The neighboring white men wanted to 
possess this valley ; and in 1830, while the Sac hunters were ab- 
sent, they came into it, drove the Indian women and children 
into the forest, and established themselves in the rich corn land 
at the mouth of Rock River, where now stands the town of Rock 
Island. When the Indian hunters returned, they attacked the 
white intruders and retook their larids. Then came United States 
troops to subdue the Indians. The Sacs were headed by Black 
Hawk, a man of great ability. He led his people across the 
Mississippi but came back in 1831 and fell on the white settlements. 
He was pursued and defeated in a battle at Bad Axe. The Black 
Hawk war was the last Indian war of the Northwest until white 
men, thirty years later, began to invade the gold fields of the 
distant mountains. 

As Jackson's second term of office neared a close he was greatly 
concerned to have a president succeed him who would not yield 
to the Bank of the United States. The man he se- Election of 
lected for this purpose was Martin Van Buren, of New ^836 
York, vice-president from 1833 to 1837. The whigs were dis- 
united, and they thought it best to divide and vote for such men 
as were strongest in the various sections of the country. In New 
England they voted for Webster, of Massachusetts ; in the South 



286 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

for White, of Tennessee ; and in the Northwest for Harrison, of 
Indiana. They thought that by this means neither Van Buren ■ 
nor one of their own candidates would have a majority, and the 
election would have to be decided in the house of representatives, 
where the chances would favor the whigs. But Jackson threw all 
his strength to Van Buren, whom he loved greatly, and the re- 
sult was that in the election Van Buren had more votes than all 
of his opponents combined. He thus became Jackson's successor 
and was in office from 1837 to 1841. He was a democrat. 

Soon after he was inaugurated the country was in the midst 
of the long-remembered panic of 1837. It was caused by the 
Panic of collapse of a period of wild speculation. Men had 
1837 borrowed money from local banks to buy land which 

they expected to sell at a handsome profit. The local banks had 
borrowed this money from the great banks in New York, Philadel- 
phia, Boston, New Orleans, and other large cities. Many people 
had gone to the grain and cotton growing lands of the West and 
South and opened farms on borrowed money, expecting that the 
high prices of produce would enable them to pay their debts quickly. 
In 1836 the prices of produce were low, and the farmers could 
not pay their obligations. This caused distress to all classes. 
The farmers could not pay the merchants for the supplies sold 
on credit. Now the banks had lent money to the merchants and 
began to press for its payment. As nobody could pay, the small 
banks began to lose money. Lands ceased to sell, and the land 
speculators began to fail, and this was another source of loss to 
the local banks. The failures of these banks affected the large 
banks, which had lent them money. Thus the panic, which began 
in the new parts of the country, was rapidly transferred to the 
older parts. Men who owed money had to sell property at less 
than it was worth in order to pay their debts. There was much 
distress; persons who held bank notes took them to the banks of 
issue and demanded silver and gold, not knowing what bank would 
fail. The banks thus quickly paid out all the specie they had, and 



GOVERNMENT UNDER JACKSON AND VAN BUREN 287 

as more and more was demanded they announced that they would 
cease to give specie for their notes. The banks of the entire 
country made such an announcement, and there was a time when 
the only money in use was bank notes. Here was seen the ordinary 
course of panics. They usually come after a period of violent 
speculation, when men become too confident and buy and borrow 
more than is wise. A collapse is sure to come, and it is likely to 
cause much hardship. 

One of the first things that the country thought of when the 
panic came was to recharter the bank. The whigs declared such 
a bank would give the country plenty of money, and Effect on the 
be strong enough to lend as much as the sound bor- election of 
rowers needed. Van Buren was opposed to the bank, ^^^o 
and he spent the first part of his administration keeping down this 
demand. In 1840 another presidential election was upon the 
country. The whigs were very hopeful. They declared that the 
democrats were responsible for the panic of 1837, and they made 
a great many people believe that if the whigs were placed in office 
prosperity would return. They nominated William Henry Harri- 
son, of Indiana, for president and John Tyler, of Virginia, for vice- 
president. Try as they might the democrats could not get the 
good will of the voters, and Harrison was elected by a large major- 
ity. The democratic candidate was Van Buren. 

QUESTIONS 

T. Who were the presidents from 1829 to 1841? Recall all the presi- 
dents from 1789 to 1829. Explain the expression "reign of Andrew 
Jackson." Who were Jackson's supporters generally? What did they 
say about the government under Adams ? What was the ' ' spoils system ' ' ? 
What kind of men did Jackson appoint? 

II. What was Jackson's idea about internal improvements? What 
danger did he fear? What was the Maysville road bill? 

III. What was the story of tariff legislation after the law of 1816 was 
passed? How did protection affect the North and South? Why could 
the South not be benefited by it? What position did South Carolina 
take ? 



288 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

IV. Describe Calhoun as a state leader. Explain the following steps 
in the nullification doctrine : the source of the power of the federal gov- 
ernment ; in what document are its powers expressed ? who may say that 
it has violated its powers? What rights, therefore, had South CaroUna, 
by this doctrine, in regard to the tariff laws? What former declarations 
did it resemble? Why did the nulUflers count on Jackson? What was 
his attitude? Under what circumstances was it made known? What 
attitude did the other Southern states take? 

V. Why did the West feel itself wronged by the East ? How did Hayne 
try to make it a friend of nullification ? Why did tliis alarm the Northern 
men? To whom did they look for a reply to Hayne? On what did 
Webster make the authority of the union rest? What did he pronounce 
resistance to the union ? How did he show that the doctrine of nullifi- 
cation would produce confusion? How was his speech received in the 
North? 

VI. Why did South Carolina hesitate to put nullification into force? 
When did she decide to go ahead? What was done in her state conven- 
tion ? How did Jackson meet it ? What bill was introduced into congress 
by his friends? Why was the first blow against South Carolina feared? 
What compromise tariff was made ? What were its features ? 

VII. Why did Jackson dislike the bank? Was the bank unsound? 
Did it take part in politics ? In what respect was it a monopoly ? What 
was Jackson's early attitude toward recharter? What action did he take 
on the question in 1832? Describe the removal of the deposits. Why 
did this cause distress in the country? What became of the bank? 

VIII. What Indians lived in Georgia, Alabama, and Mississippi? 
Describe their condition. What objection was made by the whites? 
What did the Cherokees do to protect themselves? To which side did 
Jackson lean? How did he treat the decision of the supreme court? 
What was the end of the controversy ? What was the Indian Territory ? 
How was it governed? What were the five civilized tribes? How was 
the removal of the Seminoles connected with the question of slavery? 
What was the part of Osceola in the affair? How long did the Seminoles 
resist removal? What part of the tribe remained in Florida? Describe 
the Black Hawk war. 

IX. Why did Jackson feel great concern about the election of 1836? 
What course did the whigs pursue? What was the result of the elec- 
tion ? 

X. Describe the state of speculation in the country before 1837. How 
did the process begin to be checked? Describe the panic of 1837. What 



GOVERNMENT UNDER JACKSON AND VAN BUREN 289 

position did the whigs take? What charge did they make against the 
democrats? Describe the election of 1840. 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Operation of the Spoils System ; Calhoun as a Southern Leader ; 
Jackson's Defense of the Union ; The Hayne-Webster Debate ; Removal 
of the Georgia Indians ; The Career of Osceola. 



I 



CHAPTER XXI 
HOW SLAVERY DIVIDED THE NORTH AND THE SOUTH 

Before the revolution every colony contained slaves, but 
there were many more in the South than in the North. The 
Slaves in negroes did not thrive in a cold climate and were not 
the North adapted to the labor of the North. The small number 
in this part of the country were generally domestic servants in the 
homes of the wealthy inhabitants of the towns. 

During the revolution and soon after its end there was a general 
movement in the North for the liberation of slaves. It seems that 
Emancipa- the people who were struggling for their independence 
tioninthe felt that it was becoming in them to give personal 
North liberty to aU who lived in their midst. By 1800 every 

Northern state but Delaware had abolished slavery or decreed 
its gradual removal. This result was not gained by convincing 
the Northern slaveholders. They rernained as formerly, thoroughly 
satisfied with slavery. But they were only a small part of the 
population, and the opponents of slavery got so many of the non- 
slaveholders to combine that it was easy to enact laws to check 
slavery. Some of the slaveowners of the North felt that they were 
badly treated, and sold their slaves to the Southerners. 

In Virginia the same question came up, but here it had a differ- 
ent meaning ; for the people asked what should be done with the 
Virginia re- freed negroes. In the North they were not numerous 
fuses to enough to make an impression on the population, but 
adopt It ^j^gy ^gj,g Q^gj, one-third of the population of Virginia. 

Many Virginians were willing to free them, but none wished to 

290 



SLAVERY DIVIDES NORTH AND SOUTH 291 

have a large part of their population composed of free blacks. 
They believed that if negroes must continue to reside in Virginia, 
they could be controlled better if they were slaves. If Virginia 
could have started again with only white men, she would probably 
have been willing to liberate the negroes. But it was not possible 
to send the negroes to Africa, first because it was too expensive, 
and secondly because they would probably starve in Africa, where 
there was no arrangement for receiving them. When the Vir- 
ginians realized these conditions they determined to go on as they 
were, and they gave up the hope of ridding their state of slavery. 
Thus it happened that the North became a free country and the 
South remained a land of slavery. 

In 1807 congress passed a law to forbid the importation of slaves 
from foreign countries. By the constitution such a law could not 
go into force until the beginning of 1808. It was an Foreign 
unpopular law in the cotton-growing portion of the slave trade 
South, where there was much undeveloped land and a p^o^i^'*^'^ 
great many slaves were needed to clear it. The planters did 
not hesitate to smuggle slaves into the country. The demand 
for them steadily increased and the prices steadily rose. In 1800 
an able-bodied man who worked in the fields would bring about 
$300 ; twenty years later he was worth $500. 

At this time most Northern people cared little whether the 
South had slaves or not. They did not wish to have slavery in 
their own states, but they were willing that the Southerners should 
do as they pleased about it. The day of sharp and bitter con- 
troversy had not yet arrived. 

The first outburst of feeling came quite suddenly in 1820, in the 
very calmest part of the "era of good feeling." In that year con- 
gress was debating a bill ^o admit Missouri to the union, jhe Mis- 
While it was under discussion a Northern man moved souri 
to amend the bill by requiring that no more slaves ^"®^**°" 
should be introduced into the state and that all the slave children 
born there in the future should be free after they reached a certain 



292 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



V OREGON } 7 



age. This proposition caused the South to rise up in indignation. 
Before this there had always been a slave state ready to ask for 
The balance admission about the time a free state apphed, and the 
of states members of congress from the North and the South, not 
willing to stir up sectional feeling, had allowed them to come 
in together. So it happened that in the senate the North was as 
strong as the South, and not stronger; and one section could 

thus check the other 
in any measure it 
thought injurious. 
But if Missouri, al- 
ready a slave terri- 
tory, should be made 
a free state, the 
majority in congress 
would be on the side 
of the North, and it 
was believed that free 
states only would be 
admitted in the future. 
After a hot debate a compromise was adopted. It was agreed 
that Missouri should be admitted as a slave state, but that all 
The com- the rest of the old Louisiana territory north of 36° 30', 
promise Une north latitude, should be free territory. No slaves 
could be taken into it while it was in the territorial stage, and of 
course, if none were there when it became a state, it would come 
into the union without slavery. By this compromise the North 
was sure to. gain in the future ; for a great deal more of what was 
the old Louisiana purchase was north of the compromise line 
than was south of it. , 

When the compromise was adopted, Maine, a free state, was 
Maine a admitted into the union, so that the old balance was 
state preserved between free and slave states. The 

Missouri compromise was largely the work of Henry Clay, of Ken- 




MISSOURI 

COMPROMISE 

OF 1820 



SLAVERY DIVIDES NORTH AND SOUTH 293 

tucky. He was opposed to slavery on principle, but he came from 
a slave state and had much sympathy for the slaveholders' point 
of view. Most people were glad a compromise was made, for it 
removed the question of slavery from the political field. It was 
nearly twenty years before it came up again in a serious form. 

There were always men and women who sought to remove 
slavery from every part of the country. Some of the Benjamin 
churches were openly opposed to it, especially the Lundy 
Quakers, who at an early day gave up slavery in the South as well 
as in the North. One of their number, Benjamin Lundy, tried hard 
to get the Southerners to repudiate slavery. He traveled through- 
out the South, organizing emancipation societies in many states. 
At first Lundy's work seemed very promising, but it soon became 
evident that most of the members of his societies were persons who 
did not own slaves. He did not win over the slaveholders them- 
selves into the societies, and so he became discouraged. It seemed 
that no amount of persuasion would induce the slave owners to 
give up slavery of their own accord. 

In 1816 was founded the American Colonization Society. Its 
purpose was to solve the slavery question by sending negroes to 
Africa when freed. A strip of coast was secured and TheAmeri- 
named Liberia, and it was erected into a republic under can Coio- 
American protection. The capital of Liberia was nization 
called Monrovia, after the president of the United °"^ ^ 
States. The supporters of this plan were from all parts of the coun- 
try. Some of them had dreams of a powerful black colony of 
civilized Africans, out of which should go men who would bring 
all Africa to Christianity. As time passed these hopes proved 
futile. Liberia was a plague spot, and many of the American 
negroes who went thither died. Those who lived did not prove 
that they were able to carry on the government of a prosperous 
colony. On the other hand, the American slaveholders chd not 
show that they wished to emancipate a large number of their 
slaves. For these reasons the colonization society proved a failure. 



294 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

In 1831 came another attempt to solve the slavery problem. 
Its leader was William Lloyd Garrison, who edited a newspaper 
Garrison's called The Liberator. He was a man of intense feelings, 
pia'i and believed that the proper course was to denounce 

slavery at every turn. He did not try to change the opinions of 
the slaveholders, but sought to arouse the people of the North. 
The people of the South believed that he wished to have the slaves 
rise against their masters, and they were very angry at him. The 
people of the North were divided in opinion. Persons strongly 
opposed to slavery sympathized with him. They began to form 
antislavery societies under his leadership. In a short time these 
societies were organized in most parts of the North. They served 
to call the attention of the North to slavery. At first the majority 
of the Northern people were opposed to Garrison, and he was 
sometimes roughly handled by the public. But as his influence grew 
his movement won respect, and after a few years of early struggle 
he was no longer molested. The Garrisonian form of antislavery 
agitation was generally called abolitionism, and his followers were 
called aboHtionists. As they grew in numbers they established 
many newspapers, and published a great number of pamphlets and 
books. 

One of the weapons they employed against slavery was what 
was called the underground railway. An abolitionist would go 
The Under- ^^^^ ^^^^ South to help slaves escape into the North, 
ground Rail- where they might live as free men. Starting during the 
^*y night, he would arrive with two or three fugitives at the 

house of some friend before dawn, where the party would lie 
concealed until night fall. Then another stage of the journey 
would be made under cover of darkness. Thus night after night 
the railway ran, until its human freight was delivered at last 
beyond the reach of the masters. The abolitionist who accom- 
panied the slave on the way to freedom was called the "conductor" 
on the underground railway ; the men who concealed them during 
the day were called "station agents." It is estimated that between 



SLAVERY DIVIDES NORTH AND SOUTH 295 

the years 1830 and 1860 as many as 60,000 slaves escaped from the 
South by means of the underground railway. 

In two ways the abolitionists were soon disturbing the peace 
of the politicians. Garrison had hardly begun to publish The 
Liberator when complaints came to the postmaster- Use of the 
general that his paper was mailed to negroes, free and ™^s 
slave, in the South. All his writings would make the slaves 
wish to be free, and some were likely to make some slaves feel like 
attacking their masters. The most serious complaint came from 
Charleston, South Carolina, where the postmaster reported that 
he had not delivered the papers in question. Southern congress- 
men urged the president to order that no more such papers be ac- 
cepted by postmasters for mailing to persons in the South. Im- 
mediately came protests from the North saying the post office 
was free to all citizens, and no paper should be excluded from it 
because it opposed slavery. If the postmaster-general took either 
side, he would offend the other. He was fortunate enough to hit 
on a middle course, and by doing so he avoided difficulty. He 
said that the postmasters in the North must accept abolitionist 
literature for mailing, but that Southern postmasters were not 
bound to deliver it to the persons to whom it was sent. 

At the same time the abolition societies began sending to con- 
gress petitions to restrict slavery in one way or another. They 
did not expect congress to grant what was asked, but by Antisiavery 
sending the petitions they kept their cause before the petitions 
public, and the societies grew in membership. The Southern 
congressmen became indignant, and through their influence a rule 
was made in 1836 stating that no antisiavery petitions should be 
received in the house of representatives. Now came more peti- 
tions than ever. The antisiavery orators could say that they 
were denied the right of petition, a right as old as English liberty, 
and in saying so they aroused great sympathy for their cause. 
The Southerners themselves soon saw that they had made a 
mistake, for antisiavery was growing in the free states, and in 



296 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

1844 the rule against receiving these petitions was dropped. It 
was called the "gag rule." 

The abolitionists made no distinction between slavery and the 

slaveholders. They disliked both most fervently, and they used 

abusive language against the masters without realizing 

Two errors 

that anything could be said in behalf of the slave-hold- 
ers. Two arguments might, in fact, have then been made for the 
Southerners : 1. The men then living in the South were not respon- 
sible for slavery there. They inherited it from preceding gen- 
erations and believed they were doing the best they could with it. 
2. They were not worse than other people. Among them were as 
large proportions of excellent, ordinary, and inferior people as were 
found among the people of other parts of the world. The good men 
made good masters, the ordinary men made ordinary masters, and 
the inferior men made bad masters. Some men were careful to feed, 
clothe, and train their slaves well, and some neglected to do either. 
The abolitionists did not make allowances for the good masters. 
They poured out their wrath on the heads of all who owned 
slaves. 

The Southerners replied to their critics in hot words, and the 
quarrel became bitter. They believed that the abolitionists aimed 
Restraints ^.o make the slaves take up arms and thought that the 
on the slaves should be restrained lest they catch the spirit of 

slaves ^YiQ abolitionists and try to fight their way to freedom. 

Then followed a number of state laws imposing restrictions. The 
slaves were no longer allowed to have their own preachers, no man 
might teach them to read or write, they were watched to see that 
they did not assemble secretly, and the roads were patroled at 
night by men whose business was to arrest all slaves found out 
without written permission. These harsh rules were made in the 
belief that it was necessary to forestall any efforts of the slaves to 
rise against the whites. 

Thus we see that slavery flourished in the South while 
the North threw it off before 1800. It then became sectional, and 



SLAVERY DIVIDES NORTH AND SOUTH 297 

the two sections began to be antagonistic. Lundy's plan for 
persuading the slaveholders to give up slavery having failed, and 
the colonization society having proved a disappoint- Leading up 
ment, the abolition movement under Garrison became *« war 
the most accepted form of opposition to slavery. It was carried on 
in a violent spirit and aroused hot feelings in the South, thus 
driving the two sections into dislike one for the other. If we re- 
member these steps in the progress of the controversy, we shall 
understand how the two sections finally thought it necessary to 
go to war to settle the differences between them. 

QUESTIONS 

I. Why were there fewer slaves in the North than in the South? 
By what time was slavery abolished in the North? By what methods? 
What was the attitude of the Northern slaveholders toward emancipation? 
How was the question of emancipation dealt with in Virginia? Why 
could not the negroes be sent back to Africa ? When was the importation 
of slaves forbidden ? What did the constitution say about such a prohibi- 
tion ? How was the situation affected by the invention of the cotton gin ? 
How were the prices of slaves affected ? 

II. How did most Northern men originally feel about slavery in the 
South? How did the proposition to admit Missouri to the union arouse 
strife? How had the number of free and slave states been kept equal up 
to that time? Why did each side insist on this? What compromise hne 
was adopted ? Which side won the advantage in this matter ? What free 
state came into the union with Missouri ? What man took prominent part 
in the compromise? How long was it before the question of slavery 
restriction was again before congress ? 

III. What was the attitude of the Quakers toward slavery? De- 
scribe the purpose of Lundy. How did it succeed? What was the ob- 
ject of the colonization society ? For what object was Liberia founded ? 
Why did it fail? 

IV. What was Garrison's purpose ? What was his newspaper called ? 
How was he received by the people of the North? By what name were 
his followers known? What was the underground railway? Describe 
its operations. 

V. In what two ways did the abolitionists take their cause into the 
political field? What was the compromise in regard to the use of the 



298 THE PLAIN STORY OP AMERICAN HISTORY 

mails? How did congress look upon the antislavery petitions? What 
was the "gag rule"? How did these two matters work in favor of the 
abolitionists? 

VI. What two errors did the abolitionists make in regard to the eon- 
duet of the slaveholders ? Into what classes can you divide the masters ? 
Why did the slaveholders think they should put restrictions on their 
slaves? In what respects did they restrain them? Show how these 
various steps led to war. 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Quakers and Slavery ; The Execution of the Law Prohibiting the 
Foreign Slave Trade; The Admission of Slave and Free States up to 
1861 ; Presenting the Antislavery Petitions in Congress ; The Manage- 
ment of a Slave Plantation. 



CHAPTER XXII 
THE EARLY HISTORY OP TEXAS AND THE SOUTHWEST 

We have already seen that the French settled in Canada and 
in the Mississippi valley from the Great Lakes to the shores 
of the great gulf. At the end of the Seven Years' war Louisiana 
they lost both of these regions. Canada went to Eng- goes to 
land together with the Ohio valley ; and Louisiana was ^^^"^ 
transferred to Spain, who at the same time gave Florida to England. 
By this means the British thought they had consolidated their 
power along the whole Atlantic coast, and Spain thought she had 
gained firm hold on all the region west of the mouth of the Mis- 
sissippi. She also thought she had consolidated her power by unit- 
ing Louisiana to her province of Mexico. 

This promising relation was broken up by the American revolu- 
tion. At the final treaty England was forced to give up Florida 
to Spain, who thus came to own all the shores of the Returns to 
Gulf of Mexico. But Spain was bullied by Napoleon France and 
into ceding Louisiana to France in 1800, and, as we have '^ ^°^^ 
seen. Napoleon transferred it to the United States in the treaty of 
1803. Spain retained only Florida and Mexico. We thus gained the 
mouth of the great river which drains the interior, and at the same 
time held an important part of the gulf coast separating two of 
Spain's ancient possessions, Mexico and Florida. 

The people of Louisiana were not asked to consent to the trans- 
fer of the province to Spain, France, or the United States. Life in 
Most of them were of French blood, and the whole Louisiana 
population, even the negro slaves, spoke French. They were 
an agricultural people, raising sugar on great plantations located 

299 



300 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



along the rivers. It was a profitable business, and the planters 
became wealthy. They lived in great comfort, sent their sons to 




^ 


t^Gal 


veston 




Victoria 


atagorda 






'ims Christ! 


G U 



L 

F 


F 


M E 


X I 


C 







TEXAS 






AND 


THE 




Pi. Isabel 


TEXAN BOUNDARIES 




, , _ S(j:ALE of MILfS 






25 50 


5 100 


125 150 



France to be educated, and spent a part of each winter in New 
Orleans, where life was made gay by balls, theaters, and polite 
social intercourse. The French life of Louisiana was known far 
and wide for its charming amusements. 



EARLY HISTORY OF TEXAS AND THE SOUTHWEST 301 

When Louisiana passed into American hands a large number of 
Americans moved into the province. They appeared as planters 
in the interior and as traders in New Orleans. They Two classes 
had the characteristic bustle of the American frontiers- in Louisiana 
men. To the quiet and satisfied French inhabitants they seemed 
a crude company ; and for many years there was little intercourse 
between the two classes. The white people of the French and 
Spanish stocks were called Creoles. 

The boundaries of Louisiana were not defined in our treaty of 

purchase, which only said we were to get from France as much as 

she got from Spain in 1800. When the American minis- „ , . 

. , Boundaries 

ter asked how much France got from Spam, the French 

minister replied that he did not know ; and we could not get a 

more exact statement from him. It was not like Jefferson to lose 

something through claiming too little. He announced that the 

eastern boundary of Louisiana was the Perdido River, a small 

stream east of Mobile, and the western boundary the Rio Grande. 

Spain disputed both claims. When she sold us Florida, in 1819, 
she got us to agree that we would give up all claim to the western 
coast beyond the Sabine River. We thus got Florida, 
and rounded out our possessions east of the Mississippi ; 
but we gave up our claim to Texas, the region between the Sabine 
and the Rio Grande, which Spain held as one of the provinces of 
Mexico. It was a very fertile country, and the people of the West 
were eager to see it settled by Americans. They were disappointed 
when they learned in 1819 that it was to go to Spain. They felt 
that the West had been sacrificed in the interest of the East. 

They did not give up their hope of settling in Texas. In 1821 
Moses Austin and his son, Stephen F. Austin, of Missouri, under- 
took to lead a colony thither. Mexico had just de- Austin's 
clared her independence of Spain, and felt kindly toward colony 
the United States. She gave the Austins a grant for a large tract 
of Texas land at twelve and a half cents an acre. Moses Austin 
died just as the bargain was completed, but his son took his place, 



302 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



and led many immigrants to Texas. He was a man of courage 
and practical wisdom, and he was the most important leader of the 

early Texans. No sooner had 
he arrived in Texas than many 
other men got grants for large 
tracts in Texas. In a few years 
all the best land of the coast 
region was thus granted to men 
who declared that they were 
about to bring large numbers 
of American settlers into the 
country. 

By this time Mexico had 
become alarmed. The Amer- 
icans in Texas showed plainly 
that they did not like Mexi- 
can rule, and it seemed cer- 
tain that they would try to 
Fears of the throw it off when 
Mexicans they became strong 
enough. Moreover, they were 
arriving so rapidly that it 
would not be long before they would have the necessary strength, 
unless something was done to restrain their immigration. 

Now followed several annoying restrictions. Texas was one of 
the states of the Mexican repubhc, and the settlers had been 
Restrictions promised that they should have their own legislature to 
on Texas direct their local affairs. Regardless of this promise 
Texas was united with the state of Coahuila, whose population 
was Mexican. By this means the English-speaking representatives 
in the legislature of the combined state would be out-voted by 
more numerous Spanish-speaking representatives. This would 
put a check on the action of the Texans. Another annoyance was 
a proclamation abolishing slavery throughout Mexico. As slavery 




Stephen F. Austin 



EARLY HISTORY OP TEXAS AND THE SOUTHWEST 303 



Slavery 



did not exist in any Mexican state but Texas, the order was un- 
doubtedly aimed at the Texans, who had brought slaves from the 
United States. After a while the Mexican government 
ordered that no more immigrants be admitted from the 
United States. By this time the Texans were strong enough 
to defy the Mexican officials on the border, and they continued 
to come into the forbidden region. 

As the Texans grew in numbers they became more inclined to 
assert themselves. They hated the Mexican garrisons planted 
throughout Texas, and in 1835 they took up arms The war of 
and drove the soldiers out. Then a strong Mexican independ- 
force came into the country, led by General Santa ^^'^^ 
Anna. The Texans gathered in small detachments to defend 
their homes. Nowhere were they strong enough to drive back 




The Alamo 

Santa Anna, who advanced steadily into Texas. A band of one 
hundred and eighty-three men, led by William B. ^he Alamo 
Travis, occupied the Alamo, an old fort in the outskirts 
of the mission town of San Antonio. They allowed themselves to 
be surrounded, hoping that by a brave resistance the rest of the 



304 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



San Jacinto 



Texans would rally and drive back the Mexicans. But help did not 
come, and the Alamo was stormed after a siege of thirteen days. 
All but a handful of the defenders died fighting, and those who 
managed to escape the final assault were captured and shot by 
Santa Anna. Shooting his prisoners was not unusual conduct in a 
Mexican general. 

The splendid courage of Travis and his men, aided by the cruelty 
of the Mexicans, aroused the Texans to the most heroic resistance. 
They had hitherto been disunited : now they thought of 
nothing but a combined effort to crush their foes. All 
the troops were placed under the command of General Sam Hous- 
ton, whose plan was to fall back and lure the Mexicans away from 

their base of supplies. Day 
after day he retreated, until 
the Texans themselves began 
to despair. But at San Jacinto 
Houston turned and fought. 
The Mexicans expected a vic- 
tory. They had seen their op- 
ponents in flight so long that 
they did not think serious re- 
sistance would be offered. 
They were surprised to see 
Houston's men rushing for- 
ward without regard to 
danger, shouting, "Remember 
the Alamo!" Before the 
Texan charge the Mexicans 
could not stand. They broke 
into a disorderly flight and 
were pursued and cut to 
pieces. Of the sixteen hundred men whom they had, eight hun- 
dred and thirty-eight were killed or wounded and seven hun- 
dred and thirty were captured. Among the prisoners was Santa 




Gen. Sam Houston 



EARLY HISTORY OF TEXAS AND THE SOUTHWEST 305 

Anna himself. The Texan loss was two killed and twenty-three 
wounded. 

The battle of San Jacinto ended the war. Santa Anna was 
president of Mexico and made a treaty while he was prisoner. 
This treaty recognized the independence of Texas, so santa 
far as he could secure it, with the Rio Grande for the Anna's 
southern boundary. The general commanding the *'"®**y 
rest of the Mexican army in Texas accepted the treaty and marched 
across the Rio Grande with his troops. The Texans well knew 
that the treaty signed by a captive president would be violated 
when he was free. But they meant to be ready to resume the war 
when necessary. Fortunately for them, there was almost im- 
mediately another revolution in Mexico, and the government 
had no time to continue the war against Texas. But it did not 
give up its intention of subduing the country, and year after year 
the Texans were obliged to maintain an army and navy in order 
to be ready for Mexico, if she attempted to carry out her 
threat. 

Texas declared her independence as Travis gave up his life in 
the Alamo. She sent agents to Washington immediately to confer 
about annexation. Throughout the Southwest the in^gpend- 
idea was very popular. Texas was a large and valuable ence with- 
state, and the people of the Mississippi valley rejoiced outannexa- 
in her success. In fact, many of those who fought 
under Houston had recently gone from this region to help in the 
struggle against Mexico. But the suggestion that we annex Texas 
was received with disfavor in the North and Northwest. If it 
became a part of the union, it would be open to slavery, and it 
was large enough to give the slaveholders four additional states. 
Such was the opposition of the North to slavery that President 
Jackson did not dare bring up the matter. After some hesitation 
he consented to recognize the independence of Texas, and that 
was all he would say. Van Buren, who succeeded him, would 
do no more. Texan annexation eventually became an important 



306 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



question at Washington, but before we take it up, we must con- 
sider some of the other political affairs of the time. 

In March, 1841, President Harrison, the first whig president, 
was inaugurated. He was surrounded by a multitude of poli- 
AWhig ticians hungry for office, and so much did they annoy 

president him that his health was weakened. A month after the 
inauguration he fell ill and died. Tyler now became president. 
He was not a whig and was as much opposed to a national bank 

as Van Buren. He vetoed a 
bill to incorporate a new bank 
and the whigs became so much 
disgusted with him that they 
refused to recognize him as a 
whig. Tyler was more pop- 
ular with the democrats than 
with the party which had 
elected him ; but not even the 
democrats would receive him 
as a leader. In selecting the 
candidates in the election of 
1844 he was completely ig- 
nored by both parties. The 
Election of whigs took a man 
1844 whom they were 

sure of, Henry Clay. The 
democrats chose one who had 
always been a faithful party man, James K. Polk. Between 
these two men the campaign was waged hotly. 

Tyler and the democrats could unite on the annexation of Texas. 
Annexation He was a Virginian, and the South wished for annexation 
and the because Texas was Southern in sympathy and would be 
®°"*^ sure to support Southern policies. The most impor- 

tant thing that came up at that time in regard to the South was 
the protection of slavery. Ever}^ year showed that the North 




Henry Clay 



EARLY HISTORY OF TEXAS AND THE SOUTHWEST 307 

was becoming more hostile to it and the South was anxiously 
preparing to meet whatever attack might come from that quarter. 

In 1843 reports began to circulate in the United States that 
England was making plans to get possession of Texas, and it 
was said that if we did not annex it then, we should soon Annexation 
find that we could not get it. At once Tyler tried to treaty de- 
get the senate to make a treaty of annexation. Many ^^**®<* 
of the members expressed themselves favorably, but when the 
country learned that a treaty was being considered in the secret 
sessions of the senate, so much opposition came from the anti- 
slavery men that the treaty could not pass the senate by the neces- 
sary two-thirds majority. The Southerners generally voted for 
it, and the South was keenly disappointed at its defeat. The 
people there felt that it was unfair to them to refuse a fine country 
like Texas merely because it would become the home of slavery. 
On the other hand, it seemed to the North that the Sputh was 
urging the annexation of Texas solely because it would add to 
the strength of slavery. 

The Texas question next came up as one of the disputed points 
in the election of 1844. Clay was the whig candidate for president, 
and while speaking in the South he was asked what he The election 
thought of annexation. His replies only succeeded in °^ ^°^^ 
offending his Northern friends, and he lost the election by a small 
number of votes. The successful candidate was James K. Polk, 
democrat, who favored annexation, but had at last no opportunity 
to secure it. A few days before he was inaugurated congress 
declared for annexation by a joint resolution. This method was 
employed because a joint resolution does not require a two-thirds 
majority. It was the last important act of Tyler as president. 
He wished to be remembered as the man who secured Annexation 
Texas for his country. Congress provided that Texas by joint 
should be a state in the union and that with its own "^° "*^°° 
consent it inight be divided into five states at some future date. 
Texas has not been divided and it is territorially our largest state. 



308 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

Its history since 1845, the year of annexation, has been a story 
of steady progress, and it seems hkely that it will eventually have 
a larger population than any other state. 

The first serious business that Polk had to dispose of was what 
was known as the Oregon question, a perplexing affair which had 
The Oregon come up in the following manner : the United States 
question claimed the valley of the Columbia River through the 
explorations of Lewis and Clark in 1805. England claimed the 
country also, and as neither party would give up its claim it 
was agreed that each of the two nations should have the right to 
hunt and trade in Oregon, as the country was called ; that neither 
should attempt to colonize it without giving one year's notice for 
ending the arrangement now made. The plan worked well for 
twenty years, but it could not last. When Oregon began to at- 
tract the attention of the immigrants, it was felt that it was time 
to determine to which country it should belong. 

During Tyler's presidency the Northwestern members in con- 
gress urged that we should take over Oregon as our own, create a 
Demand of government for it, and open it to settlement. They 
the North- would have defied England to war. Congress thought 
^®^* the demand too rash and took no action. The men of 

the Northwest were disappointed and wished to bring up the 
Oregon question in the presidential election of 1844. Polk and 
the democrats took their side, saying that all of Oregon was 
rightly ours and we should take it. " Fifty-four forty or fight" 
now became a popular cry. It meant that England should give 
up all the coast to the southern boundary of Alaska, which is 
54° 40' north latitude, or face our armies. 

After the election Polk felt obliged to redeem his party's promise. 
A com- He first asked England to make a treaty by which 

promise the dispute might be settled, but she replied that she 
oun ary ^^^ satisfied to have matters remain as they were. 
Then Polk began to think of force. He asked congress to give Eng- 
land notice that the joint occupancy of Oregon must end in a year 



EARLY HISTORY OF TEXAS AND THE SOUTHWEST 309 



and to take steps to govern and defend that region. After a long 
debate congress did what he asked. At first England had thought 
that we would never appeal to arms ; she now changed her opinion 
and made a treaty in which the forty-ninth degree was taken for 
the boundary. The men of the Northwest were displeased be- 
cause we had not stood out for 54° 40', but the rest of the country 
felt it was well to close the dispute without war. 

The Oregon treaty was not completed before we were at war 
with Mexico. Texas claimed that her southern boundary was 
the Rio Grande, and now that she was a state we felt War with 
obliged to defend her claim. Mexico disputed it, and Mexico 
when Polk ordered an army under General Taylor to the northern 
bank of the Rio Grande, a Mexican army crossed the river in April, 
1846, and attacked him. Taylor defeated his opponent and carried 
on a brilliant campaign south 
of the Rio Grande. He beat 
the Mexicans in several 
battles, the most important 
of which was at Buena Vista, 
where his army was far out- 
numbered. 

It was soon evident that 
the war would go on many 
months if we continued to 
fight battles in northern Mex- 
ico. To force the enemy to 
make peace it was Mexico City 

necessary to strike captured 

at his capital. That is why 

Taylor was allowed to halt °^"- winfieid scott 

where he was, while a great army under General Winfieid Scott 

landed at Vera Cruz in March, 1847, and marched overland to 

Mexico City. Scott won several important battles before he 

entered the capital on September 14. Mexico was now at our 




i 



310 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

mercy, and some Americans began to urge that we take it all. 
Polk put aside every such suggestion. He made a treaty in which 
the Rio Grande was recognized as the southern boundary of Texas 
Terms of and in which California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and 
the treaty parts of New Mexico and Colorado were ceded to the 
United States. For this region we agreed to pay $15,000,000. 

The most important result of the Mexican war was the acquisi- 
tion of California. It came in the same year in which we got 
Our Pacific the Oregon boundary settled, and we thus found our- 
coast selves possessed of a great region facing on the Pacific 

Ocean. The expansion of the Southwest had grown into the 
conquest of a great empire. Four years were enough to add 
to our possessions Texas, California, and all the lands between 
them, and they had seen our title to Oregon become clear and 
certain. These are, perhaps, the most important events in Polk's 
presidency. 

In the beginning of 1846 California was a Mexican province, and 
most of the inhabitants were Indians. There were a few missions 
California in which the priests sought to teach Christianity to 
in 1846 the savages ; and around these one might find some 

ranches. Every seaman on the coast knew that the bay of San 
Francisco, Vancouver Sound, and San Diego harbor were the 
only good harbors in a long stretch of the coast. It was to get 
possession of the first of these harbors that Polk had been most 
concerned in his plan to buy California. If we were to have Ore- 
gon, it was necessary to have good ports on the coast which should 
become the center of our trade on the Pacific. 

In 1846 a few Americans had arrived in California from Oregon. 
When they learned that the United States was at war with Mexico, 
California they attacked the Mexican garrisons and drove them 
conquered into the southern part of the province. Immediately 
there appeared American ships on the coast, and a small force 
was sent overland from the East to seize the province. By such 
efforts as these the weak Mexican rule was overthrown, and long 



EARLY HISTORY OF TEXAS AND THE SOUTHWEST 311 

before the treaty of peace was signed California was under the 
American flag. 

A few months later a Mormon walked down one of the streets 
of San Francisco holding aloft a bottle of yellow dust and shouting, 
"Gold ! Gold ! Gold from the American river !" The Discovery 
people of the town crowded around him ; and as soon o* gold 
as they satisfied themselves that it was really gold that he carried 
they hurried off to the place where it was found. It was the begin- 
ning of a great rush toward California. San Francisco was de- 
serted. Servants left their masters, clerks left the stores in which 
they were employed, and crews deserted from their ships as soon 
as the anchors had dropped in the harbor. All were bound for 
the happy places at which, as the report ran, a man might scoop 
up more than a hundred dollars worth of gold in a day. Late 
that year, 1848, the news reached the Eastern cities, and here the 
same feverish anxiety was shown to get to the gold fields as had 
been shown in San Francisco. By 1850 the population of California 
was 92,597, which was enough to warrant her admission into the 
union. We shall see in the next chjipter the difficulties that arose 
over the admission of California. 



QUESTIONS 

I. What nations held the coast of the Gulf of Mexico after the Seven 
Years' war? Who took Louisiana in 1800? in 1803? Who owned the 
territory on each side of Louisiana? Describe life in Louisiana before 
American occupation began. What was the relation between the new 
and old stocks in Louisiana ? Who were the Creoles f 

II. Why were the boundaries of Louisiana doubtful? What claims 
did we advance? How did we come to give up the claim to Texas? 
How did the people of the West feel about this action ? 

III. Describe the plans of the Austins. How were the plans carried 
out ? Why did the Mexicans become alarmed at the arrival of Americans 
in Texas ? In what way did they try to take from the Texans the control 
of their local affairs ? How did the abolition of slavery affect the Texans ? 
Why did it not inconvenience the Mexicans ? How did the immigrants treat 



310 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

mercy, and some Americans began to urge that we take it all. 
Polk put aside every such suggestion. He made a treaty in which 
the Rio Grande was recognized as the southern boundary of Texas 
Terms of and in which California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah, and 
the treaty parts of New Mexico and Colorado were ceded to the 
United States. For this region we agreed to pay $15,000,000. 

The most important result of the Mexican war was the acquisi- 
tion of California. It came in the same year in which we got 
Our Pacific the Oregon boundary settled, and we thus found our- 
coast selves possessed of a great region facing on the Pacific 

Ocean. The expansion of the Southwest had grown into the 
conquest of a great empire. Four years were enough to add 
to our possessions Texas, California, and all the lands between 
them, and they had seen our title to Oregon become clear and 
certain. These are, perhaps, the most important events in Polk's 
presidency. 

In the beginning of 1846 California was a Mexican province, and 
most of the inhabitants were Indians. There were a few missions 
California in which the priests sought to teach Christianity to 
in 1846 the savages ; and around these one might find some 

ranches. Every seaman on the coast knew that the bay of San 
Francisco, Vancouver Sound, and San Diego harbor were the 
only good harbors in a long stretch of the coast. It was to get 
possession of the first of these harbors that Polk had been most 
concerned in his plan to buy California. If we were to have Ore- 
gon, it was necessary to have good ports on the coast which should 
become the center of our trade on the Pacific. 

In 1846 a few Americans had arrived in California from Oregon. 
When they learned that the United States was at war with Mexico, 
California they attacked the Mexican garrisons and drove them 
conquered j^to the southern part of the province. Immediately 
there appeared American ships on the coast, and a small force 
was sent overland from the East to seize the province. By such 
efforts as these the weak Mexican rule was overthrown, and long 



EARLY HISTORY OF TEXAS AND THE SOUTHWEST 311 

before the treaty of peace was signed California was under the 
American fiag. 

A few months later a Mormon walked down one of the streets 
of San Francisco holding aloft a bottle of yellow dust and shouting, 
"Gold ! Gold ! Gold from the American river !" The Discovery 
people of the town crowded around him ; and as soon °^ gold 
as they satisfied themselves that it was really gold that he carried 
they hurried off to the place where it was found. It was the begin- 
ning of a great rush toward California. San Francisco was de- 
serted. Servants left their masters, clerks left the stores in which 
they were employed, and crews deserted from their ships as soon 
as the anchors had dropped in the harbor. All were bound for 
the happy places at which, as the report ran, a man riiight scoop 
up more than a hundred dollars worth of gold in a day. Late 
that year, 1848, the news reached the Eastern cities, and here the 
same feverish anxiety was shown to get to the gold fields as had 
been shown in San Francisco. By 1850 the population of California 
was 92,597, which was enough to warrant her admission into the 
union. We shall see in the next chapter the difficulties that arose 
over the admission of California. 



QUESTIONS 

I. What nations held the coast of the Gulf of Mexico after the Seven 
Years' war? Who took Louisiana in 1800? in 1803? Who owned the 
territory on each side of Louisiana? Describe life in Louisiana before 
American occupation began. What was the relation between the new 
and old stocks in Louisiana? Who were the Creoles? 

II. Why were the boundaries of Louisiana doubtful? What claims 
did we advance? How did we come to give up the claim to Texas? 
How did the people of the West feel about this action ? 

III. Describe the plans of the Austins. How were the plans carried 
out? Why did the Mexicans become alarmed at the arrival of Americans 
in Texas ? In what way did they try to take from the Texans the control 
of their local affairs ? How did the abolition of slavery affect the Texans? 
Why did it not inconvenience the Mexicans ? How did the immigrants treat 



312 THE PLAIN STORY OP AMERICAN HISTORY 

the orders that no more persons should come to Texas from the United 
States ? 

IV. How did the Texan war of independence begin? Describe the 
defense of the Alamo. Describe the campaign of San Jacinto. What 
treaty was made after it? Why was it rejected by the Mexican gov- 
ernment? Why was actual fighting suspended? 

V. How was the suggestion of Texan annexation received in the South 
and West ? in the North ? Why did it fail ? What did Jackson do about 
Texas ? 

VI. How did the death of Harrison prove a calamity for the whigs? 
What was Tyler's position on the bank question? How was he regarded 
by the two great parties ? Who were the presidential candidates in 1844 ? 

VII. Why did Tyler favor annexation ? Why did the South favor it? 
What was England's plan for Texas? What was the fate of the annexa- 
tion treaty ? How did the South feel about the outcome of the vote ? 
How did the North feel? W^hat were the positions of Clay and Polk on 
annexation? Who was elected? How was annexation accomplished and 
by whom ? What provision was made for the division of Texas ? 

VIII. Describe the claims of England and the United States to Oregon. 
What agreement was made with England? What part of the country 
showed special interest in Oregon? How did the matter play a part in 
the election of 1844 ? How did Polk settle the question ? 

IX. How did war begin with Mexico? Describe Taylor's campaign 
on the Rio Grande. Describe Scott's march to Mexico City. What 
were the terms of the treaty of peace? 

X. How did our Pacific coast possessions develop during Polk's admin- 
istration ? Describe the California of 1846. What harbor appealed to us ? 
What three movements were concerned in the conquest of California? 
What was the effect of the discovery of gold ? How did it influence the 
California Ufe ? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Creoles of Louisiana ; The Life of Stephen F. Austin ; General 
Sam Houston ; Attempts to Recharter the Bank under Tyler ; Cah- 
fornia in the Early Days of American Rule. 



I 



CHAPTER XXIII 
THE CONTROVERSY OVER SLAVERY IN THE TERRITORIES 

The line which first divided the area of slavery from the area 
of freedom was the Maryland-Pennsylvania boundary. It was 
commonly known as Mason and Dixon's line, from the Two divid- 
names of the two surveyors who ran it in 1767. It was i^g lii^^s 
long the boundary between freedom and slavery, and that is why 
the region south of the line came to be called "Dixie." West 
of the Alleghanies the Ohio River served the same purpose as Mason 
and Dixon's line in the old states. It was adopted as the boundary 
when the Northwest ordinance of 1787 excluded slavery from the 
territories north of the Ohio and left it in existence in the region 
south of that river. For many years the North and the South 
seemed satisfied with this division* 

When the admission of Missouri came up in 1820, it was neces- 
sary to decide about slavery in the region formerly called Louisiana. 
We have seen that it was agreed that slaves should be xhe Mis- 
excluded from all the Louisiana purchase north of the souriCom- 
parallel 36° 30', except Missouri, which already had Promise line 
slaves and was allowed to keep them. This dividing line ran, of 
course, no farther than the boundary of what had been Louisiana ; 
that is, no farther than the Rocky Mountains. If you will look 
at the map, you will see that the second of these lines was a little 
farther south than the first and the third was still farther south 
than the second. Had Mason and Dixon's line been extended 
due west from the Alleghanies to the Pacific, the South and the 
North would have divided the western region nearly equally. 
As it was the South got a smaller share of the West with each 
division. She was fully conscious of this in 1848, when the ques- 

313 



316 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

inated General Zachary Taylor, who had won the victories over 

the Mexicans on the Rio Grande. He was popular on account 

of his military record, and the whigs believed this popularity 

would win many votes. Their expectations were fulfilled. Taylor 

was elected by a small majority. 

The rapid migration of settlers to California and Oregon made 

it necessary to estabhsh government there. In 1848 a bill was 

before congress to create three territories, Oregon, Cali- 
Oregon, ^ <_. / 

California, fornia, and New Mexico. The South demanded that 
and New slavery should be permitted in all of them, and the 
Mexico North would have it excluded from all. Finally the 

South gave way on Oregon, and that territory was created with- 
out slavery. But there was no yielding on the other two, and 
congress adjourned without making provision for any civil govern- 
ment in them. The results were serious for California, because 
her population was not only becoming large, but it was composed 
of adventurous men who were hard to restrain even when they 
hved in a settled government. 

The year 1849 was full of sharp discussions. The president 
was a man of peace and suggested that all the trouble would end 
An angry ^^ ^^e Missouri compromise Une was extended to 
session of the Pacific, but his words were useless. Neither side 
congress wished to give in, and the day of compromise seemed 
past. Then came a bill to abohsh the slave trade in the District 
of Columbia. It was supported by the Northern members of con- 
gress, who felt it a disgrace to look out of the windows of the capi- 
tol at gangs of slaves driven to the auction rooms. Such words 
as these made the Southerners very angry, and they repHed by 
demanding that congress pass a bill to insure the return of runa- 
way slaves to their masters. The "underground railway" was 
carrying off two thousand slaves a year, and it was impossible 
to get them back after they reached the North. Neither of these 
bills was passed at that time, and congress adjourned without 
arriving at a settlement of this troublesome matter. 



SLAVERY IN THE TERRITORIES 317 

In the South at this time there were two kinds of opinion. One 
was held by a group of extreme men who felt that the North was 
bent on abolition, and they proposed to meet the move Two South- 
of the North by having the slave states leave the union era groups 
and establish a new government in which slavery would be safe. 
The other was held by people who loved the union too well to 
leave it. They were as much opposed to restricting slavery in 
the territories as the other group, but they did not think the situa- 
tion was so bad that separation was necessary. The first group 
was strongest in the states bordering on the Gulf of Mexico and 
in Georgia and South Carolina. The moderate Southerners were 
strong in the states that lay nearest to the free states. 

The talk of secession on the part of the South greatly 
alarmed all who loved the union, North as well as South. It 
is true that the extreme abolitionists were not alarmed The spirit of 
at such talk. They disliked slavery so much that they compromise 
would be willing to see the slave states have a government of their 
own ; for that would leave the union entirely without the stain 
of slavery. But the extreme anti'-slavery men were not very 
numerous in the North. The great majority of the people there 
were moderately opposed to slavery, and they were willing to 
unite with the moderate men of the South in making a compromise 
which would settle the controversy. It was in this way that 
the compromise of 1850 originated. 

The man who took the lead in this matter was Henry Clay. 
He had much to do with the Missouri compromise of 1820 and 
the tariff compromise which solved the problem of Q^y ^s a 
nullification in 1833. He was now an old man in retire- compro- 
ment in Kentucky, but at the special request of his ^^^^ 
friends he consented to become a member of the senate in order 
to try to bring congress to adopt a plan that would secure per- 
manent peace. It was the last great deed of his life. He appeared 
in Washington late in 1849 and took his seat in the senate. 

Early in the following year Clay brought forth his plan for 



318 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

peace. He proposed to give something to each side, and he urged 
that it was necessary for each to give up something that it 
The com- wished if the good of the whole country was to be 
promise of secured. His plan was for the South to give up its con- 
^^5° tention about California, allowing it to come into the 

union as a free state, and for the South to consent to exclude the 
slave trade from the District of Columbia. He asked the North, 
on the other hand, to agree to a law which would enable a slave 
owner to recover his runaway slaves and to agree that congress 
could not pass a law to forbid the sale of slaves from one state to 
another. He also proposed to erect territories in New Mexico 
and Utah without forbidding or permitting slavery in them, 
leaving the future to decide, when these two territories be- 
came states, whether or not slavery should exist in them. This 
meant that each side should give up its contention in regard to 
slavery in these two territories ; for you will I'ecall that the North 
wished slavery forbidden and the South wished it protected in 
every new territory. A fifth measure was supposed to favor the 
South, although the South as a whole was not very much con- 
cerned about it. It was a plan to pay Texas $10,000,000 in return 
for a large tract of land which she claimed on the upper Rio 
Grande. 

Many men spoke in favor of this plan, but two speeches were 
greater than all the others. One was made by Clay and the other 
Three great by Webster. Both spoke for the union, pleading for a 
speeches spirit of harmony and mutual good will. They were 
heard with great respect by the moderate men. But Webster 
was severely criticized by the abolitionists, who were numerous 
in Massachusetts, his own state. Calhoun made the greatest 
speech for the South. He paid no attention to the plea that the 
union should be preserved. For him the chief thing was to pre- 
serve the interests of the South, and he reviewed at great length 
the process by which the South had come to believe that slavery 
was threatened. He said that if the North did not give up its 



SLAVERY IN THE TERRITORIES 319 

policy, the South would separate from the union. It was the last 
speech of Calhoun's long and distinguished life. He was so weak 
that he could not deliver it, but sat on his chair exhausted while a 
friend read it to the senate. Four weeks later he was dead. 

After a long debate Clay's compromise plan was carried, and 
it has passed into history as the great compromise of 1850. It 
was well received by the people generally. They were Compromise 
tired of the hot discussions that had been going on. It adopted 
was agreed that the compromise should be a final settlement of 
the slavery dispute. Early in 1852, when another presidential 
election was approaching, the house of representatives voted by a 
safe majority that the compromise should be accepted as final, 
and both parties agreed to stand by it. It was hoped by the moder- 
ate men that this spirit would prevail during the future. 

Nevertheless, the compromise was not acceptable to the ex- 
treme men, North and South. The latter did not believe that it 
would be long before other Northern territories would Rejected by 
become states and slavery begin to feel the effects of the ex- 
restrictions. They declared that the only thing they ^'■^""sts 
had got out of the compromise was the new fugitive slave act, and 
they waited anxiously to see if it would be enforced. 

Nothing can show better how difficult it was to get human 
justice out of slavery than the question of recovering runaway 
slaves. If a Southern man appeared in any Northern -pjjgg^i 
state and claimed that a negro residing there was his law of 
slave, it would seem that he ought to be required to fugitive 
prove it beyond the shadow of doubt. But the old law 
on the subject provided that he only need take his case before a 
justice of the peace, the lowest judicial officer, who was to hear 
his statement and after hearing it decide as he thought fit. 
From the decision of this officer there was to be no appeal ; the 
trial was to be without jury, and the negro was not allowed to 
have a lawyer. If a man had been accused of stealing a pig, 
he would have been tried in a higher court, with a jury and a 



320 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

lawyer, and he would have been allowed to appeal the case to 
a higher court if he did not like the first decision. Was a man's 
liberty of less importance than the ownership of a pig? 

On the other hand, there was a reason for the law as it existed. 
If a master claiming his slave whom he had located in a Northern 
Why it was state had to go into court in the ordinary way, the law- 
harsh yer for the slave could create such delays and expenses 
in the trial that the slave would not be worth the costs of recovery. 
He could require the master to bring witnesses from the South ; 
and when they were at hand, he could have the case postponed, 
so that the witnesses would again have to be brought North. 
Finally he would try the case before a jury on whom were persons 
who believed that slavery was wrong. In view of these diffi- 
culties the first fugitive slave law, 1793, provided that there should 
be no appeal, no jury, no lawyers, and only the judgment of a 
justice of the peace was required. The purpose was to have the 
case decided as quickly as possible, with little expense to the 
master. 

In the course of time it was seen that this might lead to hard- 
ship. Any impostor who came to a Northern community might 
Abuse claim as his slave a negro who had lived there for several 

possible years, and if he could bribe a corruptible justice to give 
him the verdict, he could take back to the South as his slave a 
negro whom he could sell for several hundred dollars. It was 
claimed that many such cases occurred. The foundation of slav- 
ery was the bondage of the slave and it was hard to build on that 
foundation any laws that would secure perfect justice to all who 
had to do with it. 

The new fugitive slave law was like the old in principle, but it 
directed that the trial of cases for the surrender of fugitives should 
New fugitive be before federal officials. It was thought that these 
^aw officers, not being elected by the people of the North, 

would be independent of public opinion in the communities in 
which they lived. They were appointed by the president and 



SLAVERY IN THE TERRITORIES 



321 



could be removed by him if they did not do strict justice, regard- 
less of their feelings in the case. 

The abolitionists were strongly opposed to the law and showed 
that they wished to defeat it. When slaveholders appeared claim- 
ing slaves, they surrounded the courthouses and inter- The law a 
rupted the hearings. If the officer decided that the failure 
negro about whom the suit was brought was a slave, they took 
him from the federal marshal and carried him off secretly to 
Canada, or some other place of safety. Of course, these "res- 
cues," as they were called, were in defiance of the law, but they 
were conducted by men of good intentions, who felt that it was 
proper to lead a mob in order to strike a blow at slavery. Some 
of these violent "rescue" parties were led by ministers. 

All this was well observed by the Southerners. The only 
thing they got in the compro- 
mise of 1850, the right to re- 
cover their runaway indignation 
slaves, was nullified "^ ^^^ South 
by the action of the abolition- 
ists. They were very indignant , 
and the feeling spread through 
the South that the North could 
not be trusted to carry out the 
great compromise which, it was 
hoped, had healed the slavery 
controversy forever. From the 
time the South came to this 
conclusion, it was certain that 
there would be a reopening of 
the old controversy. Clay and 
Webster died in 1852. Both 
had done what they could to 
restrain the passions of the 
none like them left to exercise the same influence. 




Franklin Pierce 



radical men, and 



there were 
The leaders 



322 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

who remained had grown up in the days of violent sectional 

discussion, and thev were not prepared to sacrifice the 

interests of their sections to the interests of the union. 

In the future the two sections drifted farther and farther apart, 

until war was the result. 

In 1852 the spirit of distrust was not aroused, and the election 
passed off without angry feeling. The democrats nominated 
The election Franklin Pierce of New Hampshire, a Northern man 
of 1852 vvho did not agree with the general Northern opposi- 

tion to slavery. The whigs nominated General Scott, thinking 
that his popularity as a general would enable him to win the elec- 
tion. The result showed that they were mistaken. Pierce was 
elected on the ground that he would carry out the compromise 
of 1850. 

QUESTIONS 

I. Explain the significance of Mason and Dixon's line. What was 
the boundary in the region between the AUeghanies and the Mis- 
sissippi? When and how was it adopted? What was the boundary 
line between the Mississippi and the Rockies? How was it adopted? 
Show how the South secured a little less of the West with the adoption 
of each line. 

II. How did the Wilmot proviso come up? What did it propose? 
What was its support in each house of congress ? What was the position 
of the North on the question of slavery in the new territories? What 
was the position of the South on the same point? Why did the South fear 
for the future? What part did the Wilmot proviso play in the election 
of 1848? Why was each party afraid to say anything about it? Who 
were the candidates for the presidency? Which was elected? 

III. What three territories were proposed in congress? Why was it 
important to givfe them settled government? What happened to the 
propositions? How did California suffer? How did Polk propose to 
settle the controversy? Why did the suggestion fail? What demand 
was made about the slave trade in the District of Columbia ? With what 
demand did the South reply? 

IV. Into what two groups was Southern opinion divided? Explain 
the views of each group. Where was each strongest? How did the 



SLAVERY IN THE TERRITORIES 323 

prospect arouse the moderate men? What compromise was the result? 
What was Clay's part in it? What did he ask the South to give up? 
What did he ask the North to give up ? What did he propose about slav- 
ery in Utah and New Mexico? What was Texas to have? What tliree 
senators made important speeches? What were the effects of Webster's 
and Calhoun's speeches? Show how it was believed that the compromise 
would be final. 

V. What two groups refused to accept it? What important part of 
it was not executed? Explain the early law for the recovery of fugitive 
slaves. In what respect was it harsh ? Give the master's side of the case. 
What form of wrong was possible under the existing law? Where was 
the right in the matter? In what way was the new law different from the 
law of 1793? How did the new law prove a failure? What kind of 
people resisted the execution of the new law? What was the conclusion 
of the South in regard to the fugitives ? How did a new group of leaders 
now appear in political life ? What were their purposes ? Describe the 
election of 1852. 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Wilmot Proviso ; Clay's Service in the Compromise of 1850 ; 
Calhoun's Speech on the Compromise ; Webster's Seventh of March 
Speech ; The Rescue of the Fugitive Slaves after 1850. 



t 



CHAPTER XXIV 
THE STEPS LEADING TO WAR 

We have now to describe the events by which each side, the 
South and the North, came at last to open war. These events 
The anger begin in 1854 with the Kansas-Nebraska act, and they 
of nations Jead straight to the secession of the South in 1861. 
Probably neither side felt in 1854 that the end would be war. 
Each seems to have thought that the other would yield before it 
came to that. But neither was in a mood to yield, and each was 
very much excited. When two great divisions of the human 
race get angry, they act much as individuals act when angry. 
One violent act leads to another until it has gone so far that there 
is no retracting. 

The Kansas-Nebraska act was carried through congress by 
Stephen A. Douglas, of Illinois. He was a very able democrat 
Kansas- ^^^ ^^^ ^^^ ^^^ ^^ ^^^ presidency. Many Northern 
Nebraska democrats admired him greatly and would do anything 
**^* to have him elected president. He thought that if he 

did the South a great favor, it also would support him in the elec- 
tion of 1856. For this reason he got congress to pass an act 
creating two new territories, Kansas and Nebraska, into which 
slavery might go while they were territories, but the inhabitants 
were to determine whether or not it should remain when the terri- 
tories became states. This idea was called "popular sovereignty" 
by Douglas, but his opponents dubbed it "squatter sovereignty." 
Kansas and Nebraska were within the Louisiana purchase 
and were parts of the region which by the Missouri compromise 
had been dedicated to freedom. The Kansas-Nebraska act was, 

324 



THE STEPS LEADING TO WAR 325 

therefore, in opposition to the compromise. Douglas defended 
his bill ably. The Southerners gave him their support, and al- 
though some of the Northern democrats voted against the bill, 
he got enough votes from those who believed in him personally 
to carry the measure triumphantly through congress. 

There was now great indignation in the North. The abolition- 
ists were especially aroused and said many vehement things. 
Kansas was no sooner a territory than many people Two groups 
from Missouri, slaveholders, began to take up land of Kansas 
there. It was generally expected that this would be- settlers 
come a slave territory while Nebraska would become free. The 
abolitionists formed a plan to defeat this expectation. Money 
was raised and freely lent to men from the North who would go 
to Kansas to live. By this means a large free population was 
taken to the territory within two years after the passage of the 
Kansas-Nebraska act. 

Now followed a period of confusion. The Southern party in 
Kansas held elections for a territorial legislature, and it was 
claimed that a great many Missourians crossed the bor- civil war in 
der and voted in the elections, carrying them for the Kansas 
slave party. The Northern men in the territory refused to recog- 
nize a legislature chosen in this manner. They called elections 
of their own, chose a legislature, and there were thus two bodies 
claiming to be the legislature of Kansas. Each prepared a con- 
stitution and sought admission to the union as a state, but con- 
gress was so divided in sympathy that it did not accept the con- 
stitution of either faction. This state of confusion led to armed 
strife in which men were killed on each side. It did not cease 
until a greater war was about to begin. 

Meanwhile, let us return to the state of national politics. 
The whigs, as well as some of the democrats, voted for the com- 
promise of 1850. This displeased the extreme anti- The whigs 
slavery men, most of whom were whigs up to that time, divided 
and they turned so strongly against the party that it could not hope 



326 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



to carry another national election. In 1852 the democrats nomi- 
nated Franklin Pierce, of New Hampshire, for president and elected 
him with ease. His term of four years, 1853-1857, was a period 
of uncertainty and conflict. 

Although he was a Northern man, Pierce felt that he ought 
to take the Southern side in the slavery controversy, a decision 

for which he was severely 
blamed in the North. He did 
Pierce and not veto the Kansas- 
the South Nebraska act. If he 
had done so, he would have 
turned against him the South- 
erners who formed the greater 
portion of his party, and he 
would have been as much with- 
out a following as Tyler after 
he vetoed the bank bills. When 
the question of what to do with 
Kansas came up, he again 
showed that he was on the 
Southern side. He appointed 
Southern sympathizers to the territorial offices and favored the 
admission of Kansas with a slave constitution. At this time the 
word "dough-face" came into use. It was used to indicate 
a "Northern man with Southern principles." It denoted a 
Northern man who claimed the confidence of the North because 
of his place of residence, but who did, nevertheless, what the 
South wished done in an emergency. The term probably came 
"Dough- from the "dough-faces," or grotesque masks that the 
faces " children of the day were in the habit of wearing in the 

Christmas holidays. A political "dough-face" was a man whose 
Northern home was only a mask for his Southern principles. 

As it became evident that the democratic party was the de- 
fender of the slaveholders, a demand arose for a party which 




The Kansas-Nebraska Territory 



THE STEPS LEADING TO WAR 327 

would oppose them. This could not be the old whig party ; for 
it had a strong Southern wing which would leave the party if any- 
thing was done to restrain slavery. Another reason was a new party 
that the Northern democrats were bitter enemies of needed 
the whigs and would not go over to that party. If the men of the 
North were united in a party opposed to slavery, it must be a new 
party, with a new name. 

As early as 1840 a part of the abolitionists organized what they 
called the liberty party. William Lloyd Garrison would not 
join it because he did not think the opposition to slavery Early anti- 
ought to be political. This party cast 7069 votes in slavery 
1840 and 62,300 in 1844. In 1848 there was a reor- p^^'^^ 
ganization and the liberty party was taken into a new movement, 
called the free-soil party. It cast this year 291,263 votes, but in 
1852 its vote fell to 156,667. These votes show that thus far the 
parties were not successful. They had demanded the abolition 
of slavery, which most men considered an impossible dream. 
The question of checking the spread of slavery in the territories 
was not a dream; but the free-soil party was too much disliked 
in 1854 for it to be taken as the party to oppose slavery ex- 
tension. 

The passage of the Kansas-Nebraska act showed the North 
that a new party was necessary. In July of that year, 1854, at 
Jackson, Michigan, a convention met to which all who Therepub- 
wished to check the advance of slavery in the territories lican party 
were invited to send delegates. It resolved that there ^°^^^^^ 
should be a new party and took the name "republican." It 
nominated ten candidates for state offices, five of whom were 
formerly whigs, three free-soil men, and two democrats. The 
convention invited members of all the old parties to vote for these 
men on the ground that they would resist the introduction of 
slaves into the territories. Other states followed the example 
of Michigan, and as the months passed the new party showed 
much strength. The struggle of the Southerners to get control 



328 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

of Kansas aroused great feeling throughout the free states, and 
as a consequence many men joined the repubHcan party. 

In 1856 the repubhcans nominated John C. Fremont for presi- 
dent. It was their first presidential campaign, and the leading 
The election members of the whig party came forward and joined 
of 1856 the new party so rapidly that it seemed for a time that 

Fremont would be elected. The democrats found themselves 
in an awkward situation. They had passed the Kansas-Nebraska 
act, and it was evident that many Northern democrats would not 
vote for a man who had been responsible for that law. But they 
had a leader, James Buchanan, of Pennsylvania, who had no 
part in making that law ; for he was minister to England at the 
time. He was nominated and defended as a conservative and 
Fremont was pointed out as a radical. The result was that the 
democrats won the election and made Buchanan president. It 
was many years before the party elected another man to this high 
office. 

Buchanan's four years, 1857-1861, were as stormy as Pierce's; 
for the Kansas struggle went on as fiercely as ever. He, also, 
leaned to the South, as Pierce had leaned to it. It was in his ad- 
ministration that the celebrated Dred Scott case was decided. 

In the discussions over the right of Southerners to take their 
slaves into the territories, the question had often been asked, 
"Let the "Why not let the supreme court of the United States 
courts decide the matter?" The slave owners had raised 

®" ® the question : Are not slaves property ? and has congress 

any more right to say a slave owner' shall not carry one kind of 
property than another into a territory? You cannot take a man's 
cattle away from him because he goes into a certain place with 
them. How can you, then, take his slaves from him when he 
goes there ? This kind of argument was very clear to the Southern 
lawyers, who had always held that a slave was only property in 
the eyes of the law. 

In 1857 the supreme court passed on just this principle in the 



THE STEPS LEADING TO WAR 



329 



Dred Scott case. Scott was a slave whose master had taken him 
into free territory and brought him back to Missouri. He sued 
for his hberty on the ground that he became free when xhe Dred 
he went into free territory, and once free he could not Scott de- 
become a slave again by coming back to Missouri. "^'o° 
The most important point in the case was this : Did the consti- 
tution give congress the power to exclude slavery from the terri- 
tories? The court held that congress had no right to make such 
a law. It thus overthrew the Missouri compromise and opened 
all the territories to slavery. Seven of the judges of the court 
took this view. They were all democrats and five were Southern 
men. The decision was received with an outburst of scorn in 
the North. The judges were charged with being prejudiced, and 
it seemed that the supreme 
court had lost the respect 
of the people in that part 
of the country. In fact, 
the controversy had gone 
to such a stage that how- 
ever the question had been 
decided it would have 
aroused the violent denun- 
ciation of the side that lost. 
The South was greatly 
pleased with the decision. 
In the summer of 1858 oc 
curred the famous debates 
between Abraham Lincoln 
and Stephen A. Douglas, 

both of Illinois. Lincoln- 

The former had Douglas 

been nominated ^^^^^^^ 

by the republicans and the 

latter by the democrats for election to the senate of the United 




Harriet Beecher Stowe 



330 THE PLAIN STORY OP^ AMERICAN HISTORY 

States. They held a series of debates, and the chief question 
they discussed was slavery in the territories. The subject was 
well presented and when the debates were published, they had 
great influence North and South. 

But the Lincoln-Douglas debates did not have as great influence 
as "Uncle Tom's Cabin," by Harriet Beecher Stowe, pubhshed in 
"Uncle 1852. Many thousands of people who did not care 

Tom's about politics read this touching picture of life in the 

Cabin " cabins of the slaves, and were deeply moved by it. They 

were apt to think that this was what happened with all the slaves. 
We should remember that Mrs. Stowe did not mean to say that all 
masters were as bad as Uncle Tom's, nor were all slaves as good 
as her hero. But the book showed how slavery might work in the 
worst conditions, and it had a wonderful effect on the Northern 
people. The Southerners were highly indignant that it should 
be taken as a fair picture of slavery. It is probable that the 
book turned them as much against the North as it turned the 
North against the South. It called forth several replies from 
Southern writers, but none of them were as well received as Mrs. 
Stowe's book. 

In 1859 came John Brown's raid on Harper's Ferry, Virginia. 
Brown was a man of very earnest purpose. He hated slavery so 
much that he thought anything, even the taking of 
life, was justified in those who warred against it. 
His scheme was to establish a depot of arms in the mountains of 
Maryland, near the Potomac, and then seize Harper's Ferry. 
He thought the slaves of the neighborhood would join him as 
soon as they knew he had taken the place ; and he expected to 
give them arms and lead them through the hills into Pennsylvania, 
or Ohio, before the Virginians could stop them. He made his 
preparations secretly and seized a railroad roundhouse in the town 
during the night. The white people of the town were thoroughly 
alarmed. They besieged the roundhouse with arms in their 
hands. No slaves joined Brown. Meanwhile, regular troops 



THE STEPS LEADING TO WAR 



331 



were hurried to Harper's Ferry, and John Brown and his followers 
were captured. He was tried for inciting the slaves to kill the 
whites, and was convicted after a fair trial. The sentence of 
the court was death by hanging. He did not deny that he had 
violated the law, but he held that the law was bad because it was 
made to uphold a bad institution. He went to his death calmly, 
as one who voluntarily gives up life in order to benefit his fellow 
men. 

Those who agreed with Brown that slavery was the worst of 
evils had nothing but admiration for the way he had given up his 
life. Those who took the Southern side of the ques- Effect on 
tion felt that Brown was a madman, crazed by the ^^^ South 
violent utterances of the abolitionists. Of this class were most of 
the Southerners. They had long foretold that some abolitionist 
would at last try to arm the slaves to destroy the masters, and 
they saw in the attempt at Harper's Ferry a fulfillment of their 
prophecy. Nothing else did so 
much to make the Southern 
people willing to begin the war 
as the belief that some day the 
North would come into the 
South and set the slaves to 
murdering the white people. 

Six months after John Brown 
was hanged the country was 
holding conventions to nom- 
inate candidates for another 
presidential election. The re- 
publicans met in Chicago and 
nominated Abraham Lincoln 

Lincoln, of lUinois, nominated 

who in 1858 made the great 

speeches against Douglas. He was unknown in the East, but 

soon after the nomination he came to New York to make a speech 




Stephen A. Douglas 



332 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

and by his honesty and good sense pleased all who met him. It 
was generally thought that he would carry the free states. The 
whig party in these states was reduced to a small part of its 
old strength. A majority of its members had gone over to the 
republicans, and a large number of the democrats had followed 
their example. 

The democratic party was divided. Many Southerners asked 
that the party should declare for the protection of slavery in all 
Division of the territories. Of course, the party could not carry 
the demo- a single Northern state on that platform, and the 
crats Northern democrats refused to agree to it. The 

democratic convention remained in Charleston several days, 
trying to make some kind of settlement ; but most of the Southern 
delegates continued firm and finally left the convention and took 
steps to nominate a Southern candidate. The result was two 
democratic candidates for the presidency: Douglas, of Illinois, 
the Northern candidate, and Breckenridge, of Kentucky, the 
Southern candidate. No one expected that either would win. 

The result of the election was the success of Lincoln. He 
did not have a majority of all the votes cast by the people; but 
The election he had a majority of the electoral votes, and that made 
of i860 him president. Had the war not occurred the country 

would have had a republican president, a republican house of 
representatives, and a senate in which democrats and old whigs, 
now called "unionists," would have been in control. 

Throughout the campaign the South had declared it would 
leave the union if a republican president was elected, and now it 
states se- was as good as its word. The first state to secede was 
ceding South Carolina, in which a convention declared the 

state out of the union on December 20, 1860. The South Carolin- 
ians celebrated the event with great joy. The state, they held, 
was now an independent nation, and the Charleston papers began 
to print the news from Washington under the heading, "Foreign 
News." Other states followed, and by the end of February, 1861, 



THE STEPS LEADING TO WAR 



333 



six more had declared themselves out of the union. 
Georgia, Alabama, Missis- 
sippi, Louisiana, Florida, 
and Texas, all cotton- 
growing states. 

The seceding states took 
steps at once to establish 
a united government. At 
Montgomery, Alabama, on 
February 4, they formed 
themselves into 
"The Confed- 
erate States of 
America," with 
a constitution 



They were 



The Con- 
federate 
States of 
America 

that 




was 
nearly like that of the 
United States. They elected 
Jefferson Davis, of Mis- 
sissippi, president and in- 
vited other Southern states 
to join them. But for 
several weeks none of the 
other slave states, seven in number, showed a willingness to leave 
the union. 



Jefferson Davis 



QUESTIONS 

I. With what law did the last stage of the slavery controversy begin? 
What was the ambition of Douglas ? How did he propose to win the favor 
of the Southern democrats ? What did the Kansas-Nebraska act provide ? 
Define "popular sovereignty." What other term is used for the same 
thing ? How did the act violate the Missouri compromise ? How was it 
carried through congress? 

II. What two streams of settlers went into Kansas? Which arrived 
first? What abuse was charged in the first elections? Show how each 



334 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

side organized a form of government. What attitude did congress take ? 
What was the result for Kansas? 

III. What was the effect of the compromise of 1850 on the whig party? 
Describe the election of 1852. Which side of the slavery controversy 
did President Pierce take? Why? What would have been the result 
if he had taken the other side? Why was he called a "dough-face"? 
Define the term. 

IV. Why must a successful antislavery party be a new party? De- 
scribe the courses of the various parties founded to oppose slavery before 
1854. Why did these parties fail ? Describe the convention at which the 
republican party was founded. Describe the election of 1856. In what 
respect was Buchanan fortunate in being minister to England in 1854? 
What was his attitude toward the South? 

V. On what ground was the supreme court asked to decide the ques- 
tion of slavery in the territories? What were the facts in the Dred Scott 
case ? What was the chief point decided ? What did the court say about 
it ? How was the decision received ? 

VI. Describe the Lincoln-Douglas debates. What was their effect ? 

VII. What was the influence of " Uncle Tom's Cabin " ? Why did the 
South disUke it ? Describe the attempt of John Brown to liberate 
slaves in Virginia. What was his plan ? What pxirpose did the South at- 
tribute to him ? How did they think it fulfilled their expectations ? 

VIII. Describe the nomination of Lincoln. How did he impress the 
country ? Show how the democratic party was divided. What two can- 
didates were nominated ? What was the result of the election ? Name 
the presidents from 1829 to 1861 and give dates and parties. 

IX. Describe the secession of the Southern states. Which states were 
in the first group that seceded ? What united government did they estab- 
lish ? Whom did they make president ? 



SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Kansas-Nebraska Act; The War in Kansas; "Uncle Tom's 
Cabin"; Early Career of Abraham Lincoln; John Brown's Raid; The 
Charleston Convention ; The Organization of the Confederate Govern- 
ment. 



CHAPTER XXV 
THE WAR IN THE WEST 

The conflict about to begin was the greatest war fought in 
the western hemisphere. It began in April, 1861, and why it was 
ended in April, 1865. The South fought for independ- bought 
ence, and it sought to secure independence in order to preserve 
slavery from the attacks of the North. The North fought to 
preserve the union, but its success secured the overthrow of slavery 
and made certain that our great country should not be divided. 

When Lincoln was inaugurated, March 4, 1861, the newly formed 
confederacy held all the forts within the borders of the states 
that had seceded, except Fort Pickens, in Florida, and Attack on 
Fort Sumter, at the entrance of ' Charleston harbor, ^ort Sumter 
The confederacy felt in honor bound to take and hold all the forts 
within its limits. President Lincoln felt equally bound to hold 
all the forts of the union. There was a long period of waiting, 
neither side wishing to strike the first blow. Finally President 
Lincoln decided to send a ship with supplies to relieve the garrison 
in Fort Sumter. The confederates took this as a hostile act and 
fired on the fort from the batteries they had built around it. At 
the end of thirty-four hours of bombardment Fort Sumter sur- 
rendered, and the garrison marched out with the honors of war. 
Nobody was killed on either side, but the war which everybody had 
feared was actually begun. 

President Lincoln now called for 75,000 troops to put down 
the resistance of the South. In every Northern state Raising an 
his call was received with enthusiasm, and he found he ^™y 
could get many more men than he asked for. So many volun- 

335 



336 THE PLAIN 8T0RY OP AMERICAN HISTORY 




Pliotu by Brady 



Abraham Lincoln 



THE WAR IN THE WEST 



337 



teered that by the end of June he had an army of 310,000 men. 
The confederate president also called for troops, and the Southern 
people rushed to arms as eagerly as the men of the North. The 
Southern states which had not seceded were now in a sad po- 




Bombardment of Fort Sumter 



sition. They had shown that they did not wish to leave the 
union ; but they found that they must fight for the other states 
confederacy or against it. When they realized this, secede 
they felt compelled to go with their own people. Virginia, North 
Carolina, Arkansas, and -Tennessee all seceded and joined the 
confederacy. Maryland, Kentucky, and Missouri seemed about 
to do the same, but Lincoln found means to keep them from 
giving their main strength to the confederacy. In Missouri and 
Kentucky Southern sympathizers held conventions, declared their 



338 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



states out of the union, and sent delegates to the confederate con- 
gress at Richmond. But these movements were not very im- 
portant. Each of these three " border states " sent troops to both 
armies. 

The first important battle was at Bull Run in Virginia, thirty 
miles from Washington. A union army of 30,000 men, com- 
manded by General McDowell, was marching southward in re- 
sponse to a cry of "On to 
Richmond!" from all the 
North. Richmond was the 
Battle of capital of the 
Bull Run confederacy, 
and the opinion was com- 
mon that it could easily 
be taken. McDowell knew 
his soldiers had not yet 
been trained into good 
fighters, but he thought the 
Southern troops before him 
were as raw as his own men. 
At Bull Run a confed- 
erate force commanded by 
General Beauregard offered 
him battle. July 21, 1861, 
from 10 A.M. until 3 p.m. 
the fight raged fiercely. 
The union men gradually 
pushed the confederates back in spite of strong resistance. Mc- 
Dowell at three o'clock thought the victory his when a strong 
body of fresh confederate troops rushed on the field and threw 
themselves into the battle. The tired union soldiers fell back, 
and then became discouraged and broke into disorder. Had they 
been seasoned troops, they would have retired in good order, 
forming new lines near the battle field and holding back those 





^ 


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1 


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I 


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.^-^ 


\\ 1 SCALE OF MILES , V. 


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A The Union Advance 


BATTLEFIELD 


B Fint Oonfederate P.isition 


OF 


C Final Union Line 


BULL RUN 


D final Confederate Line 


1861 



THE WAR IN THE WEST 339 

who pursued. But their confusion gave place to panic, and through 
the night they fled, not stopping until they reached Washington. 

The battle of Bull Run dispelled the belief that the South could 
be conquered in a few weeks. It was followed by a long period 
of preparation on each side. Troops were collected, a period of 
camps of instruction were formed, and week after preparation 
week the slow process of drill went on. It was necessary to do this, 
because up to that time we had maintained only a small regular 
army, and the men needed for the war then beginning were to be 
drawn from the farms and cities of the country, North and South. 
It was not until the beginning of 1862 that the opposing armies 
were again in active motion. 

The men who directed affairs in the South realized that the 
problem on their side was to defend their territory from attack. 
They did not have to conquer the North, but to keep Task of 
the North from conquering them . It was their advantage ^^^^ side 
that they could fight at home, where they knew the roads and riv- 
ers. On the other hand, the North must move into the South, push 
back the confederate armies, and put down the resistance of the 
confederates in one state after another until the authority of the 
union was again recognized from one end of the South to the 
other. More soldiers are needed to invade a country than to 
defend it. 

The Appalachian Mountain system runs from Canada to the 
northern part of Alabama. It divided the confederacy into two 
parts. For this reason the union armies had to move ^ double 
in two great divisions, one on the east and the other on invasion of 
the west of the mountains. It was hoped that they *^® South 
would carry all before them and speedily unite somewhere south 
of the mountain system. But this hope was not entirely realized. 
The western division moved more slowly than was expected, but 
it made steady gains of territory. At the end of each year it 
had gained something which it did not lose, and at the end of the 
summer of 1864 it took Atlanta and was victorious in Georgia. 



340 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



But the eastern division was not so successful. Year after year 
it failed to push back the confederates; and when Atlanta was 
taken the eastern division was still trying to take Richmond, only 




seventy-five miles from the Potomac River. When the western 
division, with its special task accomplished, swept northward 
from Atlanta to the aid of the eastern division then before Rich- 
mond the confederate forces were caught between two great armies 



THE WAR IN THE WEST 341 

and the war was brought to a close. In this book the western 
and eastern expeditions will be described as distinct movements, 
each in its entirety; and the western invasion will be taken up 
first. 

The western union armies assembled along the Ohio River 
and the confederates awaited them in a series of posts running 
east from the Mississippi through southern Kentucky The western 
and northern Tennessee. These posts were placed on ^^^ 
river and railroads, because it was known that the attacking 
armies would have to march along such routes in order to carry 
their supplies. Behind this series of posts was Nashville, the 
capital of Tennessee and a railroad center. If it were taken, a 
large portion of western Tennessee would be freed from confeder- 
ates. 

Early in 1862, General Grant, who had not yet shown his military 
ability, was in command of an army on the Ohio, and General 
Buell commanded another in central Kentucky. Grant's first 
Before Grant were two rivers, the Tennessee and the campaign 
Cumberland, which run parallel through Kentucky and a part of 
Tennessee and empty into the Ohio quite close together. The 
confederates, not knowing by which river the union armies might 
come, had erected Fort Henry on the Tennessee and Fort Donelson 
on the Cumberland. Grant saw that he had the advantage of 
them, because they must divide their forces, placing some in one 
fort and some in another, while he could attack each separately 
with all his men. He first moved against Fort Henry, and its 
defenders were glad to escape before he surrounded them. They 
fled to Fort Donelson ; and Grant, following them, attacked so 
quickly and vigorously that they did not have time to get out of 
the place. They had not supplies enough to enable them to 
resist, and were forced to surrender nearly 15,000 prisoners. 
Grant was now within seventy-five miles of Nashville, but he did 
not try to take it. That task was left for Buell, who marched 
into the city. The confederates did not wait to be surrounded, 



342 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



M 


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PI 


Iff 


^^. Jl 




M^ 


^Sl_ 




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General U. S. Grant 



© Underwood and Underwood. 



THE WAR IN THE WEST 



343 



but retreated in a southwestern direction, and finally took posi- 
tion at Corinth, in the northern part of Mississippi. Grant 
followed close after them, but kept along the line of the Tennessee 











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Harper's Ferry 

The place was important, both because it commanded the entrance to the Shenandoah 
Valley and because it was here that an important railroad connecting Washington with the 
West crossed the Potomac. 



River, for he must use that stream to transport his supplies. An 
army can go no faster than its supplies ; and of these Grant's army 
needed a vast quantity. 

The confederates now united were under the command of 
General Albert Sidney Johnston, one of their best generals. 
Grant thought them so crushed that they could not offer battle, 
and advanced leisurely. He was expecting Buell to join him 



344 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

from Nashville, and when that was done, he intended to throw 
the united army against Johnston at Corinth. 

The confederate general realized that his best chance with Grant 
was to attack before Buell came up, and a good opportunity to 
do this was offered him by his opponent. April 5, 1862, Grant's 
army was lying along the Tennessee River, twenty-three miles 
from Corinth. One of the divisions was five miles from the main 
body, and Grant himself was nine miles away. On this day 
Buell came within nine miles of the main body and was allowed 
to halt without joining. 

At this moment Johnston was moving out of Corinth. He had 
40,000 men, whom he led swiftly forward. In the early dawn, 
Battle of May 6, 1862, he opened battle on that part of the 
Shiloh union army nearest to him. It was only 37,500 

strong, and its commander was not on the field. Johnston 
wished to overwhelm it at once and fought desperately, but 
the union forces resisted stubbornly. At three o'clock in the 
afternoon Johnston fell, mortally wounded, but the battle con- 
tinued. At nightfall Buell's army arrived to find the confeder- 
ates fighting hard to drive Grant's men from their last position. 
Their aid was greatly needed, and saved the day. On the seventh 
the united union army renewed the battle and the confederates were 
outnumbered and forced from the field. This encounter has been 
called the battle of Shiloh, from the name of a church around which 
there was much hard fighting ; but sonaetimes it is called the battle 
of Pittsburgh Landing. The confederates withdrew to Corinth 
and were followed by Grant, who entered the place late in May. 

The union army had now taken all of eastern Tennessee except 
the Mississippi River bank, and that was about to be taken. Forces 
Parts of the operating on the river came down in the wake of Grant, 
Mississippi who moved through the interior, a hundred miles 
^^^^ east of the Mississippi. They surrounded the forts 

guarding the river and forced them to surrender. June 6 Memphis 
was taken, and federal gunboats went unchecked as far south as 



THE WAR IN THE WEST 345 

Vicksburg, Mississippi. To make this victory greater, a union 
fleet under Farragut took New Orleans two weeks after the 
battle of Shiloh, first running past the confederate forts on the 
river in a most dramatic manner. By this success the North now 
held the mouth of the river, and her gunboats could pass up as 
far as Port Hudson, Mississippi. Between that place and Vicks- 
burg was a distance of one hundred and fifty miles, and this was 
the only part of the great river which the confederates controlled 
after June 6, 1862. We shall soon see how they lost it. 

During the latter part of 1862 Grant remained in northern 
Mississippi, and the chief scene of operations in the West was 
East Tennessee. Buell was given a large army at 
Nashville and ordered to drive the confederates out of 
the region southeast of him. The key of this part of the state 
was Chattanooga, situated on the edge of a hilly upland through 
which the railroad opened the way into northern Georgia. As 
long as Chattanooga was in the hands of the confederates Atlanta 
was safe. There was a strong confederate army in Chattanooga 
under General Bragg. 

Buell was a deliberate general, and the confederates took such 
liberties with him that he was made to seem ridiculous. He first 
marched out of Nashville, in a slow and cautious Outwitted 
manner. Bragg left Chattanooga as though he would by Bragg 
meet him. Suddenly he swerved to the east. Buell thought he 
was trying to get into Nashville by the northeast and only looked 
more carefully to its defenses. He was soon to learn that Bragg 
had a grelater game in view. Courier after courier came tearing 
into Buell's camp to report that the confederates were rushing 
northward into Kentucky and about to get between Buell and 
Louisville. The union army now turned about and made for the 
Ohio River. For some days it was doubtful who would reach 
Louisville first, Bragg or Buell. But the confederate general 
loitered two days in eastern Kentucky and was out-distanced 
by his opponent. 



346 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

Bragg then turned round in an indecisive way and Buell moved 
against him with a strong army, forcing him to fall back toward 
Battle of Chattanooga. The long march gave the confederates 
Perryviile no advantage, but it thoroughly frightened the people 
north of the Ohio. On his retreat a portion of Bragg's army 
encountered a portion of Buell' s at Perryviile, and there was a 
hard battle, at the end of which the confederates had not driven 
off the federals, as they tried to do, and they were forced to con- 
tinue their retreat into Tennessee. For his slow movements in 
this campaign Buell was removed and General Rosecrans took 
command. 

Late in the year Bragg salUed out of Chattanooga and met 
Rosecrans at Murfreesboro, fifty miles from Nashville. It was a 
Battle of hard-fought struggle, but at its close the confederates 
Murfrees- withdrew to Chattanooga, although they had the 
^°^° best of the actual fighting. Rosecrans remained 

where he was, and for six months more Bragg was undisturbed in 
Chattanooga. 

The first move in 1863 was to take that part of the Mississippi 
which was still in confederate hands. Its key was Vicksburg, 
a strongly fortified town on a bluff on the eastern bank of the 
river. Grant moved on the place from Memphis early in 1863. 
He saw that the proper way to attack it was first to get to the 
dry ground south and east of the town, and then to establish lines 
and starve the garrison into surrender. 

How to get his supply ships south of Vicksburg was his first 
problem. After some delay he decided to run past the confederate 
Preliminary batteries, believing that the ships would pass the 
campaign danger zone before more than one or two could be 
destroyed. The feat was safely performed, with the loss of only 
one transport. Then the union army was marched down the 
west bank of the Mississippi and carried over to the east bank 
twenty miles below the town. Grant now began a brilliant cam- 
paign. First, he marched quickly to Jackson, thirty-five miles 



THE WAR IN THE WEST 347 

east of Vicksburg, and defeated and drove away an army which 
the confederates were sending to help the force in the fortress on 
the river. Then he turned on General Pemberton, commanding 
the defenders of the fortress, and drove him back into the town. 
Grant followed quickly and at once began the siege of Vicksburg. 

From that time Pemberton's fate was sealed. He was largely 
outnumbered, and the confederates did not have soldiers enough to 
drive away the besiegers. Starvation did its work, and siege of 
on July 4, 1863, Pemberton and his army, 30,000 Vicksburg 
strong, with a vast amount of arms, surrendered as prisoners of 
war. It was the greatest blow the confederates had received thus 
far in the West. They were now cut off from their territory beyond 
the Mississippi, a region from which they had drawn large supplies 
of beef. Soon after Vicksburg fell Port Hudson was taken, and 
all the great river was in union hands. 

While Grant besieged Vicksburg Rosecrans lay in Nashville 
waiting for a signal to march against Chattanooga, where Bragg 
kept watch. Late in June the signal was given, and Advance on 
Rosecrans moved forward. ChaJ:tanooga was well Chattanooga 
fortified and the ground favored the defenders. In front of the 
town is the Tennessee River, and behind it rise high ridges which 
enabled the confederates to hold back an army coming from the 
north. Rosecrans did not dare approach that way. He decided 
to make a wide turn to the south and arrive through the hills that 
lay in that region. It was a hazardous movement; for Bragg, 
who knew the country well, might attack him while his army was 
divided, some on one side and some on another of the ridges. 

Bragg showed a disposition to accept the opportunity given 
him. He moved to the southward, but traveled so slowly that 
when he met Rosecrans at Chickamauga, twelve Battle of 
miles from the town, the union forces had become Chicka- 
united. Now followed a hard battle which was a ™^"g* 
union defeat, although General Thomas, by seizing a pass in the 
hills, allowed the federal troops to enter Chattanooga and re-form 



348 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



their lines. Bragg followed behind them, and had the disappoint- 
ment of seeing his opponents sitting down in his own town, while 
he assumed the task of besieging it from the high ridges south 
of the place. He brought up his guns, took a portion of the river 




on which the federals must bring up their supplies, and waited 
for hunger to force them out of the town. 

The process of starvation began speedily. All the supplies 
that could be brought into Chattanooga for the great federal 
army that now occupied the place had to be carried in wagons 



THE WAR IN THE WEST 



349 



over wretched roads for a distance of sixty miles. They were 
hardly sufficient for the daily use of the men, and gloom settled 
on the army. Confidence in the commander was weak- Gloom in 
ened, and President Lincoln appointed Grant to the Chattanooga 
command, believing that he could bring about a better feeling. 
Grant's first care was to open a new means of getting supplies 
by driving the enemy away from the river. This put his men 
in good spirits. Reenforce- 
ments were sent, and No- 
vember 24, 1863, Grant's plan 
Grant began a great o^ battle 
battle against the confederates 
on the ridges above him. On 
the western end of their line 
was Lookout Mountain, a high 
peak overlooking the whole 
region. On it was a confed- 
erate force. Eight miles east 
of it was Missionary Ridge, 
which ran for six miles parallel 
with the river and looked down 
on the union camp. It was 
crowned with confederate bat- 
teries and troops. Grant's plan 
was to send a superior force 
commanded by Sherman, up to 
the top of the northern end of Missionary Ridge to sweep that crest 
through its entire six miles, driving away its defenders. While 
this was attempted by Sherman he ordered the rest of his army 
to make a feigned attack on the front of the confederate lines. 
The object was to keep the confederates in their positions, lest 
they should concentrate against Sherman and overwhelm him. 
The part of his forces that were to make the feint against Lookout 
Mountain were under General Hooker, and those which were to 




General Thomas 



350 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



threaten the southern part of Missionary Ridge were under General 
Thomas. A glance at the map will show what an interesting 
scheme this plan of battle was. 

Each general set out to carry through the part assigned him. 



BATTLEFIELD OF 
CHATTANOOGA 




Hooker, to everybody's surprise, found the forces before him 
The battle of weaker than was expected, and his men rushed up the 
Chattanooga steep sides of Lookout and soon had the stars and 
stripes floating in that position. This action has been called the 
"battle above the clouds." It did not have an important result 



THE WAR IN THE WEST 



on the rest of the field, for Lookout was too far away for its guns 

to bear on Missionary Ridge. Sherman began his attack on the 

northern end of the Ridge in good style. He was, however, halted 

by a hidden ravine which cut across the ridge. While he waited, 

Thomas's men began their feigned attack along the bottom of 

the rest of the ridge. Their orders were not to go up the sides, 

but the fire from the top was heavy and the soldiers forgot their 

orders, rushed up the slopes four 

hundred feet high, and drove the 

confederates away from their 

batteries and trenches on the 

crest. Grant was irritated 

when he saw the blue lines begin 

to scale the heights, and said 

sharply, ''By whose orders is 

this?" Thomas, who stood 

by him, replied, "By their own, 

I fancy." When Bragg saw 

that Missionary Ridge was lost, 

he withdrew his army from the 

neighborhood of Chattanooga, 

and went into winter quarters 

at Dalton, Georgia. The key 

to northern Georgia was now in 

union hands. 

The year 1864 opened with 
gloomy prospects for the confederacy in the West. Do what it 
could, it could not place more thg-n 75,000 men in the field to 
protect Atlanta. This town was an important place ; importance 
for through it passed the railroads which carried the of Atlanta 
supplies to the confederate armies in Virginia. If it fell into union 
hands, it would be very difficult to support Lee's army. Its con- 
quest would, also, mean that Georgia, as well as Tennessee, was 
lost to the confederacy. It was for the interest of the South to 
strain every effort to save Atlanta from capture. 




(^ Atlanta 

Bnma^ i Ca.. N. T. 



352 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



When the fighting began, each army had a new general. Bragg 
was removed, and in his place was General Joseph E. Johnston, one 
New com- of the best Southern commanders. He was a cautious 
manders general and fought on the defensive. General Grant 
had shown such ability that he was called to the East and placed 
in command of the army opposed to General Lee. Over the force 
in Chattanooga was placed General Sherman, who had been one 

of Grant's best subordinates. 
He had about 100,000 men, well 
organized and confident of his 
ability. He had a good corps 
of railroad constructors ; for 
he must carry his supplies over 
the railroad, and he knew that 
Johnston would destroy the 
track and bridges as he fell 
back. 

Early in the spring Sherman 
marched against Johnston . He 
found him in such a strong posi- 
tion that he dared not attack. 
Marching but moved as if he 

and flanking would pasS arOUnd 

the left flank of the confeder- 

General W. T. Sherman q^^qq JohnstOU COuld UOt afford 

to let his enemy get between him and Atlanta, and so fell back in 
order to keep between Sherman and the town. But when Sherman 
came up, Johnston was in front of him, and so well fortified that it 
was not wise to attack. Sherman wished for nothing more than 
an open fight, for his army was larger and would probably win. 
But Johnston was too clever to give him that advantage. At 
Kennesaw Mountain, twenty miles from Atlanta, Sherman de- 
termined to make an effort to get through his opponent's lines. A 
fierce charge was all that was necessary to show that such an at- 




THE WAR IN THE WEST 353 

tempt was useless, and he again resorted to flanking tactics. By 
every such movement he gained a few miles on the road to Atlanta ; 
and, by repeating them, he came at last to the Chattahoochee 
River, six miles from his goal. 

Now a fortunate thing happened for the union side. The 
Southern people had not understood why Johnston kept falling 
back, and there were loud calls for his removal. July 17 Hood in 
he was replaced by General Hood, a man who liked to command 
give battle. Sherman was glad to hear the news of this change, and 
predicted that there would be no more confederate retreat. He 
was right. Hood fought and was beaten in three battles, and, on 
September 2, 1864, he evacuated Atlanta rather than allow himself 
to be shut up in the place and starved into surrender. Hood was 
now outside the town, and thought he could play havoc with 
Sherman by cutting the railroad by which the union supplies came 
up. But Sherman had enough troops to hold Atlanta and protect 
the railroad as well. Hood next planned a great raid on Nashville 
through which Sherman's supplies must pass on their way to the 
front. If he could take this place he would, he thought, bring 
Sherman back into Tennessee in a great hurry. But before 
Nashville he was utterly defeated by General Thomas, and his 
army was so badly shattered that it was no longer feared. 

Sherman was satisfied that Hood would be crushed at Nashville 
and did not wait in Atlanta to see the outcome of the campaign. 
He had another plan in his mind. November 15, 1864, Marching 
he set out to march to Savannah, two hundred and through 
sixty miles away. No army was in front to hamper Georgia 
him, and he divided his forces so that they marched by parallel 
roads, presenting a front sixty miles wide. He ordered his men to 
"forage liberally," and they more than obeyed him. Railroads 
were destroyed, supplies were taken, and the soldiers were so little 
restrained that they pillaged residences freely. Jewelry, silver- 
ware, and anything that had value and could be carried off was 
taken away, while much property that could not be transported 
2a 



354 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

was destroyed. Sherman's needless severity in Georgia and South 
CaroKna was a mistaken poHcy. The people whom he reduced 
to distress were going to be American citizens when the war was 
over, and it took them a long time to forget how Sherman reduced 
them to distress. 

Marching northward from Savannah, Sherman passed through 
South Carolina and a part of North Carolina. At Goldsboro, in 
the latter state, he learned that Lee had left Richmond. He 
halted for two weeks, and then turned westward. In April Lee 
surrendered, and a few days later Sherman received the surrender 
of the small' army under Joseph E. Johnston that was trying to 
impede his march. The war of the Western armies was over. 

QUESTIONS 

I. When did the war between the North and the South begin and 
end? Why did the seceding states feel that they must control the 
forts? What was Lincoln's attitude? What precipitated the attack on 
Sumter? Describe the attack. Describe the call for troops. For what 
purpose was a blockade established? What choice was now left to the 
Southern states still in the union? How did they act in reference to it? 

II. Why did McDowell feel that he must fight the battle of Bull Run? 
Describe the battle. What was the result? What did the battle show? 
How long after it was fought before there was a resumption of serious 
fighting ? 

III. Compare the tasks of the South and the North in the war. Show 
why the Northern invasion must be a double one. How were the two great 
forces to cooperate? In which force was progress most marked? How 
did the campaigning finally end? 

IV. Describe the position of the two armies in the West at the beginning 
of 1862. What was the significance of Nashville ? Describe the relative 
location of the Tennessee and Cumberland rivers. How were they 
defended by the confederates? How did Grant take the two forts? 
In what direction did he then turn? Where did the confederates await 
him? Why are rivers and railroads important in war? 

V. Who was now in command of the confederate armies facing Grant ? 
How did Grant fail to appreciate his capacity? Describe the plan of the 
confederates in the battle of Shiloh. What was the result of the battle ? 



THE WAR IN THE WEST 355 

Describe the operations by which the confederates lost the upper and 
lower parts of the Mississippi. What part was left to them? 

VI. What task was assigned to Buell? Why was Chattanooga an 
important place? How did Buell open his campaign? How did Bragg 
elude him? What race now began? How did it terminate? Describe 
the battle of Perry ville. Who succeeded Buell? Describe the battle of 
Murfreesboro. 

VII. Describe the position of Vieksburg. In what way did Grant 
decide to approach it ? How did he effect a landing at the desired place ? 
What rapid campaign then followed? Describe the siege of Vieksburg. 
How did the f aU of the place affect the confederacy ? 

VIII. On what campaign did Rosecrans now enter? Describe the 
position held by Bragg. How did Rosecrans proceed to attack it? To 
what danger did he expose his army ? How did Bragg meet him? What 
was the result of the battle ? How did Bragg expect to force the federals 
out of Chattanooga ? What was the state of feeling in the place ? What 
new commander was appointed? Describe his plan of battle. Describe 
the "battle above the clouds." How did Sherman proceed to carry out 
the part assigned him ? How was the crest of Missionary Ridge carried ? 
To what position did the confederates retire? 

IX. Why was Atlanta an important place? Describe the new com- 
mander on each side in 1864. How strong were the armies? What 
was the nature of the campaign that was now fought? What battle was 
fought in it, and with what result? Why was a new confederate com- 
mander appointed? What was his plan of campaign? What was the 
result? How did he first try to cut Sherman's communications? On 
what long expedition did he then start ? What was the result ? 

X. What daring plan did Sherman noAV form? Why was he able to 
carry it out ? How did he treat the country through which he marched ? 
Why was a policy of severity unwise in the South ? What did Sherman do 
after he reached Savannah ? What was his object? How was his march 
diverted to another direction? Where did it end? 



SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Attack on Fort Sumter ; The Battle of Bull Run ; The Capture of 
New Orleans ; Lincoln and the Border States ; Lincoln and Grant ; Gen- 
eral Butler as Commander in New Orleans. 



CHAPTER XXVI 

THE WAR IN THE EAST 

The story of the federal campaigns in the East, unHke that 
of the Western campaign, contains a great deal of failure. In 
Eastern 1862 and again in 1863, there was one defeat after 

campaigns another until the people of the North, who had given 
life and money freely to preserve the union, became heartsick. It 
seemed that nothing could break down the confederate armies in 
Virginia. But in 1864 General Grant was placed in command of 
the union forces there and by great effort the army under him was 
made very large. The result of his labors was that he wore out the 
strength of his opponents and early in 1865 forced them into sur- 
render. His work was greatly aided by the presence of Sherman 
in Georgia and the Carolinas, the region from which the confed- 
erates in Virginia drew their supplies. 

We have seen that the first battle in Virginia, Bull Run, was won 
by the South. After it came a long period of getting ready. 
McCieiian's The Union commander was General McClellan. He 
preparations made drill and organization his chief aim ; for the confu- 
sion that followed Bull Run showed that the bravest men 
were poor soldiers if they did not know how to face reverses. 
The seven months he gave to drill made his army a great machine 
which could be used at will by a good general. 

In April, 1862, he began what is known as the Peninsula Cam- 
paign against Richmond. From colonial times that part of 
On the Virginia between the James and York rivers has been 

peninsula called "the Peninsula." McClellan landed at its 
eastern end and marched westward, keeping in touch with his 

356 



THE WAR IN THE EAST 



357 




358 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



supply ships on the York River. He met Httle opposition, but 
marched so slowly that it was the middle of May before he was 
in striking distance of Richmond. He had 120,000 men and 

the confederates in Rich- 
mond had less than 
70,000, commanded by 
Joseph E. Johnston, who 
later opposed Sherman 
before Atlanta. 

McClellan was await- 
ing a body of troops 
which were to be sent 
from Washington over- 
land, and while doing so 
Battle of he carelessly 

Seven Pines divided his 

army, placing about two- 
fifths of it at Seven 
Pines, on the west side of 
a small river, while the 
rest were four miles away 
and on the east side of 
the river. Johnston was 
a few miles away and 
pounced down on the 
exposed part of the union 
army, hoping to surround 
and cut it to pieces before 
the main body of the army could come up. He met a stronger 
resistance than he expected. All through the day he charged 
against the federal troops, who fell back slowly toward the river, 
looking anxiously for reenforcements. In the afternoon help 
came and the success of the confederates was checked. Although 
the advanced troops had been caught unprepared and badly 




General "Stonewall" Jackson 



THE WAR IN THE EAST 



359 



handled, there had been no confusion. The lesson of Bull Run 
had been well learned. 

General Johnston was wounded in the battle of Seven Pines 



¥ 



' 



SEVEN DAYS 
TIGHT 




and General Robert E. Lee was appointed in his place. He soon 
made a plan to drive McClellan from his position seven days' 
north of Richmond. He called General ''Stonewall" ^8*^* 
Jackson, with 20,000 men, to come to his aid from the Shenandoah 
valley, and together they began the "seven days' fight around 



360 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

Richmond." Three great battles and three smaller ones marked 
these seven days of contest. Lee's object was to get between 
McClellan and York River, in order to cut off his supplies. This 
was done on the second day of the fighting. He thought that 
the union forces would then become discouraged and be forced 
to surrender. But McClellan was too resourceful to be crushed. 
When he was cut off from York River, he turned toward the James, 
moving rapidly to its bank and fighting four of the six battles as 
he went. His supply ships were moved from the York to the 
James River, and he prepared to make a new advance from a well- 
protected base only twenty miles from Richmond. But the 
McCleUan North had lost confidence in him and was calling for 
removed hjg removal from the command of the army, and 
President Lincoln yielded to the demand. McClellan's troops 
were hastily withdrawn from the James, and a new advance on 
Richmond was attempted along the line of railroad which Mc- 
Dowell had followed to Bull Run. 

The next great battle was on the ground on which the first was 
fought, and it is called the second battle of Bull Run. The union 
Pope in commander was General Pope and against him was 

command Lee, who had moved from Richmond as soon as Mc- 
Clellan's army was withdrawn from the James. Pope was an 
overconfident man, and his soldiers suspected that he was not able 
to lead them to victory. It was a great mistfortune ; for soldiers 
will not risk their lives resolutely when they think that their 
orders come from a man who does not plan well. Lee, on the 
other hand, had just finished a brilliant campaign, and his soldiers 
idohzed him. Besides this, Lee had with him "Stonewall" 
Jackson, an exceedingly able commander for a quick and bold 
flanking movement. It was he who played the decisive part in 
the game that defeated Pope at second Bull Run. 

By Lee's orders Jackson marched unobserved around Pope's 
right wing, as Pope was collecting his men about thirty-five miles 
south of Bull Run. Jackson reached the railroad that brought up 



THE WAR IN THE EAST 



361 



Pope's supplies, cut the telegraph wires, tore up the track, and 
destroyed a vast depot of food and clothing that had been col- 
lected for the union army. Pope gave up all thought of Jackson's 
fighting and turned about to protect his rear. Jackson ^ank march 
had about 20,000 men with him and was in a dangerous situation, 
for he had marched three days ahead of the rest of the confederate 



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army. If Pope were wise, he would come in between him and Lee, 
who was coming up as rapidly as he could, and if this were clone, 
the active Jackson would have to move fast indeed to save himself 
from being surrounded by a superior army. 

But Pope did not act wisely. He went any way but the right 
way, and Jackson was able to conceal his troops in a body of 
dense thicket looking down on the field of the first battle, until 



362 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 




General Robert E. Lee 



THE WAR IN THE EAST 



363 



he was assured that Lee was at hand. Then he rose from his 
covert and began to attack the columns of union troops that 
moved along the road below the wooded heights. The second 
federal troops formed battle lines and fought with great battle of 
courage, but they were not able to withstand the efforts ^^ ^"° 
of Lee and Jackson united, and after two days' fighting, August 29 
and 30, 1862, they retreated toward Washington. Pope was 
removed from command and McClellan was restored. 

He had his hands full at once ; for Lee did not hesitate a moment 
after crushing Pope but moved into Maryland. He probably in- 
tended to strike at Harrisburg, the capital of Pennsyl- Battle of 
vania. He thought that the union army was so badly Antietam 
shattered that it could not be brought to face him for several weeks. 
But the restoration of McClellan worked wonders with the men, 
and when he met 
Lee at Antietam, 
September 16 and 
17, his soldiers were 
anxious for the fray. 
It was a hard battle. 
One division after 
another fell on the 
confederate ranks, 
but all were driven 
back. At the end 
Lee stood in his 

tracks, but he was so badly used that he marched back into Vir- 
ginia to recover. McClellan was severely criticized for not crush- 
ing Lee before he could cross the Potomac. He was removed from 
command and General Burnside was put in his place. 

The next battle was at Fredericksburg, on the Rappahannock 
River, December 13, 1862. Burnside had a great army on the 
north side, and Lee awaited him on the south side. Burnside 
threw his divisions across the river, formed his lines on the south 




Antietam (from a War-time Sketch) 



364 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

bank, and charged against the hills on which were planted the 
confederate cannon. He was repulsed at every point. A part 
Battle of of Lee's lines was very strong, and here, by some cu- 
Fredericks- rious chance, Burnside made his hardest charges, 
burg jj-g columns fell before the enemy's fire hke grain before 

the scythe. At the end of the day the union army drew back to 
the north bank, and all the loss of life at Fredericksburg was for 
nothing. 

At this time four generals had been tried as leaders of the 
Eastern armies and all had failed : McDowell, who commanded 
The unsuc- ^t first Bull Run ; McClellan, who commanded in the 
cessfui peninsula campaign and at Antietam ; Pope, who com- 

generais manded at second Bull Run ; and Burnside, who made 
the blunder of assaulting at Fredericksburg. Lincoln was greatly 
discouraged. Burnside resigned his command, and General 
Hooker took his place. With a new general and a new year 
the country hoped for better success. 

Hooker was very popular in the army and he had shown a great 
deal of fighting ability ; but he was to prove a failure as the com- 
Battie of mander of a great army. He moved forward toward 
ChanceUors- Richmond as soon as the spring sun dried the roads. 
"^® Lee met him at Chancellorsville, and the result was 

another great confederate victor3^ Hooker's army was driven 
back in its course and the advance to Richmond was checked. 
But the confederates suffered a severe loss in the death of "Stone- 
wall" Jackson, who was shot in the darkness by his own men just 
after he had made a brilliant move around the right wing of 
Hooker's army. The battle of Chancellorsville was fought May 2, 
1863. It was the last great confederate success. 

The victory filled the South with rejoicing, and it was decided to 
make another invasion of the North. Lee's army moved for- 
LeeinPenn- ward as soon as possible, so that the blow might be 
syivania given before the union army recovered from the effects 
of their defeat. Lee moved rapidly across the narrow part of 



THE WAR IN THE EAST 



365 



Maryland, and late in June his forces were in Pennsylvania going 
straight toward Harrisburg. His advance guard reached the bank 
of the Susquehannah opposite the town, but went no farther. The 
turn of events behind him warned Lee that he was in danger and 
he drew back. 

The danger came from the union army which was drawing to- 
gether and coming up behind 
Lee in great numbers. Hooker 
had been removed and Gen- 
eral Meade was appointed in 

his place. The sol- concentrat- 

diers were in good ingat 

spirits and showed Gettysburg 

that they were determined to 
wipe out the stain of their re- 
cent defeat. As the confeder- 
ates turned southward they 
followed roads that led to the 
town of Gettysburg, in south- 
ern Pennsylvania. The fed- 
erals marching northward fol- 
lowed roads that led to the 
same place. 

It was July 1, 1863, that 
the advanced parts of the two 
armies came together two 
miles north of the town. They 
formed battle lines across the 

road and began to fire on one another without a moment's delay. 
Each hour the lines grew stronger as fresh regiments came up 
behind. But the confederates arrived in larger numbers 
than their opponents, and their lines swung around the 
federal lines, which were forced back throughout the afternoon 
until they retreated through the streets of Gettysburg and took 




The first day 



366 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

position on a ridge just south of the town. On the ridge was a 
cemetery, hence the name Cemetery Ridge. During the night 
troops arrived on both sides in great numbers and the Hnes on 
each side were extended with the fresh arrivals. 

On the second day of July the two armies were stronger than on 



-^^^^ggr aggs^ ii^ 




Battlefield of Gettysburg, looking South from Round Top 

the day before. Lee had noticed a small round hill about a mile 
The second south of Cemetery Ridge and thought if his cannon 
day could be placed there they would sweep the ridge 

and drive the federals out of their strong position. He ordered 
that it be taken early in the morning of the second day, but the 
troops sent to take it moved so slowly that they did not try to 
carry it until the middle of the afternoon. By that time the hill, 



THE WAR IN THE EAST 367 

known as Little Round Top, was firmly held by the union soldiers, 
and the confederates were not able to take it, although they 
fought desperately. There was other hard fighting this day, but 
the union lines held fast, and at nightfall each army was still in 
its position, the federals on the crest of the ridge and the con- 
federates on another ridge, parallel with the first and about a mile 
away. 

The third of July was the third day of this great battle. Lee 
was determined to fight it out in his tracks. He was going to 
stake all on a great effort, and he believed that when The third 
it came to such a test, soldier against soldier, regiment ^^y 
against regiment, his men, who had won so often, would sweep 
their opponents before them. He massed 15,000 men, one-third 
taken from Longstreet's, and two-thirds taken from Hill's corps, 
ordering them to charge at the center of the union lines. Long- 
street's men were lead by General Pickett, but Hill's men marched 
beside him and bore their full share of the charge. 

"Pickett's charge," as it is usually called, was the most famous 
charge of the war. When the gray Knes rose from their position of 
safety behind the confederate guns and marched into Pickett's 
the open fields between the two armies, they were in charge 
plain view of both forces. Not a gun was firing, and every eye 
on each side was watching to see what would be the next move. 
After a moment eighty union cannon opened on them. An eye- 
witness who was watching the field with glasses reports that 
every union shell knocked over at least five confederates as it 
fell and exploded among them. But the gray lines did not falter. 
When there was a gap, the men closed up and moved forward. 
Suffering horribly, they reached the crest of Cemetery Ridge and 
pressed back the federal soldiers for a few moments. But they 
were now only a small detachment against a great army. The 
union regiments formed around them, captured a large number, 
killed many others, and forced the rest back to the positions from 
which they had started. This splendid charge had been splendidly 



368 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

repulsed. It was Lee's last effort. He could do no more, and 
he drew back from Gettysburg, as he drew back from Antietam 
in the preceding autumn, in order to recuperate the army on the 
southern side of the Potomac. Forty-three thousand four hundred 
and fifty-four men were killed, wounded, and captured on both 
sides in this battle. The South was already straining to raise men, 
and the veterans lost here could not be replaced. Gettysburg was 
won the day before Vicksburg surrendered. That fourth of July, 
1863, was the most important of our national birthdays since that 
original birthday, when the declaration of independence was signed. 
During the rest of the year each army remained inactive in Vir- 
ginia. 

At the beginning of the year 1864 the federals and the con- 
federates lay facing each other seventy-five miles south of Washing- 
ton. On the Southern side Lee was in command, and he 
had 62,000 men, all he could get from the weakened 
South. He knew well that the men he lost in battle could not 
be replaced, and so he planned to fight only on the defensive. The 
union army was twice as large as Lee's, and it was commanded by 
Grant, whose success in the West had made him the most trusted 
general in the Northern armies. He proposed to throw his vastly 
superior army on Lee's smaller force and crush it. 

Grant's first attack was the engagement known as the battle 
of the Wilderness. It was fought in a strip of thick scrub oak 
Battle of the through which Grant must march to reach the rear 
Wilderness of the place occupied by Lee. While he was lost in the 
mazes of the roads through this region, he was hotly attacked by 
the confederates, who knew the roads better. The union troops 
could see only those confederates who opposed them, and it was 
not possible to use the federal artillery. Grant thus lost the ad- 
vantage of his superior numbers and suffered severe loss before he 
at last got out of the Wilderness. 

He then moved eastward, hoping to gain Spotsylvania Court- 
House, a place that was valuable because two important roads 



THE WAR IN THE EAST 



369 



When Grant 



met there. But Lee was too shrewd to be caught, 
arrived at the httle town, 
he found the confederate 
army in front of him, hold- 
ing the roads Battle of 

and ready for Spotsylvania 

battle. Grant ordered an 
attack, thinking he could 
push the enemy away from 
his front. But all he 
could do failed. 

Grant now made another 
flank movement, but Lee 
was vigilant, and every 
time the fed- Flanking 
eral army and 
flanked, the ad^^^i^^g 
confederates turned about 
and faced their foe. It 
was the same kind of 
movement that was occur- 
ring at that time in Georgia, 
where Sherman was ad- 
vancing on Johnston. It 
had this advantage, that it 
always brought the union 
army a little nearer to 
Richmond. June 2, the 
two armies were at Cold 
Harbor, ten miles east of 
Richmond. The prospect 

was that Lee would retire ^""^"''^ operations in Virginia durinir 1864 

behind strong earthworks and the city would have to be besieged. 
Grant was loath to have a siege, and he determined to make a 
2b 




370 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

mighty effort to break through the confederate hnes and end the 
war in a few days. He thought that his adversaries had been so 
weakened that they could not withstand a grand charge by his 
superior force. The result showed that he was mistaken. In a 
brief hour at dawn he threw 80,000 men against Lee, and they were 
repulsed with a loss of 6000, while the confederates fighting behind 
earthworks lost not more than 600. From the battle of the Wilder- 
ness to that of Cold Harbor, a period of four weeks, Grant lost 
Two points about 55,000 men and Lee lost 19,000. Two points 
gained had been gained by this terrible sacrifice of Northern 

soldiers. One was that Lee's army was materially weak- 
ened, and the other was that the federal army was before Rich- 
mond. 

The last act of the war was now about to begin. Grant left 
Cold Harbor, crossed the James River, and began the siege of 
Siege of Petersburg, twenty-five miles south of Richmond. If it 
Petersburg ^as taken, the capital of the confederacy would fall. 
The siege went on all through the autumn and winter. Sherman's 
operations in Georgia cut off supplies, sickness and hunger wasted 
the strength of the confederates within the town, and early in the 
spring it was evident that the place could not be held when the 
roads were dry enough to permit the federal troops to attempt 
wide marches around the confederates. At the end of March the 
roads were passable, and the union army became active. A 
heavy force fell on the confederates at Five Forks, eighteen miles 
southwest of Petersburg. They carried the place and captured 
5000 of Lee's soldiers. He at once saw that if he stayed in Peters- 
Lee in burg and Richmond he would be surrounded, his 
retreat supplies cut off, and starvation would force him to 
surrender. Without a moment's delay he marched out of both 
places during the night of April 2-3 and turned toward Lynch- 
burg, where he hoped to get fresh supplies and make another 
stand. 

Grant was as active as Lee, and his troops, well provided with 



THE WAR IN THE EAST 371 

food and horses, could move faster. He pursued day and night 
and succeeded in getting between the confederates and Lynch- 
burg. On the eighth of April, Lee encamped at Appomattox 
courthouse. Next morning he gave orders to proceed westward. 
In a few minutes an orderly came to report that union The retreat 
cavalry were in front, and Lee ordered his infantry blocked 
to charge the cavalry. As the charge was made, the horsemen 
drew aside and revealed solid ranks of infantry across the road. 
To charge infantry was more than the thin ranks of the confed- 
erates could do. Convinced that any further resistance would 
mean the needless sacrifice of life, Lee sent a note to Grant to ask 
the terms of surrender. 

In the end the army of the confederacy laid down their arms 
and were allowed to go to their homes, giving their words that 
they would not fight again against the union until they Terms of 
were exchanged as prisoners of war. Grant offered the surrender 
easiest terms he could offer. He allowed those soldiers who owned 
their horses to take them with them, in order, as he put it, that they 
might have them "for the spring plowing." These generous 
terms made a favorable impression on the Southern people, whose 
spirits were crushed by their defeat, and they long remembered 
Grant as a generous foe. 

Lee surrendered on April 9, 1865. On the 26th of the same 
month Johnston surrendered to Sherman at Durham, North 
Carolina, the terms being the same that Grant allowed to Lee. In 
May two confederate armies that were keeping up a slight resist- 
ance in the Gulf states also surrendered, and the war was over. 

QUESTIONS 

I. How did the Eastern campaigns differ from those of the West? 
How was the confederate army in Virginia at last conquered? 

II. What was McClellan's service for the army in the autumn of 1861 ? 
What is the Peninsula of Virginia? Describe McClellan's march up the 
Peninsula. On which river were his supply ships? Compare the two 



372 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

opposing forces. How did the battle of Seven Pines begin? How did 
it end? How did the conduct of the troops compare with their conduct 
at Bull Run? Describe the seven days' fight. Who was the confederate 
commander? How did McCleUan save his army from defeat ? Why was 
he removed from command ? 

III. By what route did the next expedition try to reach Richmond? 
Who was the union commander? What kind of general was he? What 
plan of attack was made by Lee ? Describe Jackson's part in its execution. 
How did he elude Pope after striking the union Une of communications? 
Describe the second battle of BuU Run. 

IV. What was Lee's purpose in going into Maryland? How was he 
disappointed in the condition of the union army? Describe the battle 
of Antietam. What criticism was now made of McClellan? Who suc- 
ceeded to the command of the union army? Describe the battle of Fred- 
ericksburg. 

V. What union generals had now been tried at the head of the army? 
To whom did the command go after Burnside's failure? Describe the 
battle of Chancellorsville. What heavy blow here fell on the confederates ? 
Recall Jackson's chief successes. 

VI. On what campaign did Lee now start? Trace the movement of 
his army in the North. Why did he concentrate his forces at Gettysburg? 
Describe the movements on the union forces toward Gettysburg. Describe 
the first day's fighting at Gettysburg. Where did the union army take 
its stand at nightfall? What happened during the night? Describe the 
confederate operations of the second day. What was the result? What 
was the most important feature of the battle on the third day ? Describe 
"P*ickett's charge." What were the total losses at Gettysburg? Who 
was the union commander in this battle? 

VII. Describe the position and strength of the two armies in Virginia 
at the beginning of 1864. Who was the union commander? What was 
his plan of campaign ? Describe the battle of the Wilderness. What was 
the Wilderness? To what point did Grant next march? What was the 
result of the fighting there? What kind of campaign then followed? 
Why did Grant attack at Cold Harbor? Describe the attack. What were 
the results of the fighting from the Wilderness till the end of the battle of 
Cold Harbor? 

VIII. How did the last struggle of the war begin? Before what town 
did Grant begin a siege? How did Sherman's operations in Georgia 
have an influence on the siege? What was the importance of the battle 
of Five Forks? What was the city to which Lee wished to retreat? 



THE WAR IN THE EAST 373 

Where was his army surrounded ? What convinced him that he could go 
no farther? What terms of surrender were allowed by Grant? What 
other armies surrendered? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The McClellan Controversy ; Jackson's March around Pope's Army ; 
Pickett's Charge at Gettysburg ; Grant's Campaign of 1864 ; Sheridan's 
Campaign in the Shenandoah Valley ; Lee's Surrender at Appomattox. 



CHAPTER XXVII 



MEASURES SUPPORTING THE WAR 



Grant's victory saved the union from division, but it was not by 
battles alone that success was won. Behind the armies was the 
Part taken civil government, and behind the generals were the 
by the civil president and congress. It was their duty to raise the 
government jiioney with which the armies were paid and with which 
supphes of arms, ammunition, food, and clothing were bought. If 
money had not been on hand in large quantities, the armies could 
not have defeated their opponents. This was true of the South 
as well as of the North. A larger history than this would have a 
long account of how each government met these problems. 

There were four wa^'s of raising money. One was to increase 

the duties on imports, which 
means to raise the tariff. 
The rates were gradually 
raised, until at the end of 
the war they were exces- 
Tariff and sive. Only a small 
internal rev- part of the money 
^""^ needed could be 

secured in this way. A sec- 
ond way was internal revenue 
taxes, laid on tobacco, intoxi- 
cating liquors, and other 
They were paid by the manufacturers and added to the 
prices of the articles taxed. A third way was to 
borrow, which is the same as issuing bonds ; for a 
government bond is only a written promise of the government 

374 




iW right is right, since God is God, 
And right the day must win, 

lo doubt, would be disloyalty, 
To falter, would be sia. 



A War-time Enveloc 



articles 



War bonds 



MEASURES SUPPORTING THE WAR 375 

to pay a certain sum of money in a certain number of years, with 
interest at a specified rate. Many millions of dollars were derived 
from loans. When .the government decided to borrow money, it 
had the bonds printed and signed by officers of the treasury depart- 
ment. They were then sold to the bankers. A bond for a hundred 
dollars was sold for as much as the government could get for it. 
Sometimes it would not bring more than eighty dollars. This was 
because so many bonds were issued that there was no great 
demand for them. 

Another way of getting money was to issue the notes of the 
government, which were the same as paper money. By this means 
the government merely printed the money in small bills. Paper 
A bill would pledge the treasurer of the United States to money 
pay to the bearer so many dollars on demand. They were printed 
in green ink, with elaborate engraving so as to make it hard for them 
to be counterfeited. The public called them greenbacks. They 
were used for money freely. The government did not pay specie 
for them during the war nor for nearly fourteen years after the 
war ended. They were issued in .such large quantities that the 
people did not want to take them in equal exchange for gold and 
silver, and finally it happened that a hundred dollars in gold 
would bring a hundred and forty dollars, or more, in greenbacks. 

After the war got well started the cost of it averaged two million 
dollars a day. This, you will see, amounted to a great deal of 
money for the four years the war was waged. At the Total war 
end the unpaid bonds of the government amounted to ^^^^ 
nearly 12,300,000,000, and there were $433,000,000 in greenbacks 
in the hands of the people. As the greenbacks were promises to 
pay money they were a part of the war debt. Most of them, how- 
ever, have been left unpaid and are now a part of the money of the 
people. A large part of the bonds have been paid. 

Next to raising money, the matter that caused the president most 
anxiety was slavery. By the constitution congress had no right 
to abolish slavery. Lincoln had great respect for the laws and 



376 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

the constitution and he early announced that he would not in- 
terfere with slavery in the states. This was highly important, for 
Lincoln and three slave states had not legally seceded. They would 
slavery have left the union if they had thought the war was fought 

to destroy slavery. But Lincoln's announcement displeased the 
former abolitionists, who hated slavery, and thought that the war 
gave the country an opportunity to get rid of it once for all. They 
urged Lincoln to proclaim the death of slavery ; but for a long time 
he would not do as they wished. 

Finally, in 1862, he made up his mind that the South would not 
be as able to carry on the war so vigorously if he declared the 
Emancipa- slaves free. He gave fair warning of what he in- 
tionproc- tended to do, and then, on January 1, 1863, he issued his 
amation celebrated emancipation proclamation. It was a war 
measure ; that is, it was used as a means of weakening the fighting 
power of the South. It declared that the slaves should be free in 
all parts of the country then engaged in war against the union. 
This had nothing to do with slaves in other parts of the union. 

If the abolitionists thought the proclamation would force the 
confederacy to employ some of its soldiers in keeping the slaves 
from insurrection, they were mistaken. The negroes 
showed no disposition to make trouble. The North 
was fighting to set them free, and if they had armed themselves, 
they might have done much damage in the portions of the South 
to which no union army could penetrate. But the slaves remained 
quietly on the plantations, working as usual, producing the food 
that was to support the armies that fought to perpetuate slavery. 
The negro was attached to his master, and by nature he was too 
peaceful and good tempered to become a rioter. 

Lincoln himself, and many of his friends, were not satisfied 
Thethir- that a president could abolish slavery by a mere 
teenth order, even though it was done as a war measure ; 

amendment ^^^ ^j^^^ ^^^ congress to pass an amendment to the 
constitution declaring that slavery should not exist in the United 



MEASURES SUPPORTING THE WAR 377 

States. This is known as the thirteenth amendment; it was 
ratified by three-fourths of the states, as the constitution requires, 
and went into full operation on December 18, 1865. It abolished 
slavery in the states which had not seceded as well as in those 
which had seceded. 

Another serious matter for the president and congress was our 
relations with Europe. The Southerners thought that the na- 
tions of Europe would be glad to see the United States The feeling 
divided into two powers. They were right in this »" Europe 
respect. Both France and Great Britain would have been 
pleased to learn of the success of the confederate states. But the 
Europeans disliked slavery, and when the war became a struggle 
to abolish slavery, it became certain that the European govern- 
ments would not take the Southern side. 

The South thought that the dependence of the British and 

French cotton mills on the Southern states for their supply of 

raw cotton would make it necessary for those powers „. 

, King cotton 
to interfere in behalf of the confederacy. "Cotton is 

king," said they. This idea was so often repeated in the South 
that the people came to accept it as a certainty. The course of 
the war showed that the idea was erroneous. It is true that the 
European cotton mills suffered greatly when the supply of Ameri- 
can cotton was cut off. In the region around Lancaster, England, 
there was great distress on account of the large number of work- 
men thrown out of employment. But at that time few of the 
working people of England had the vote, and they had no voice in 
parliament. The men who controlled parliament were landowners, 
who had little sympathy with suffering mill workers. In fact, the 
English landowners were more likely to sympathize with the South- 
ern planters, who resembled them somewhat in life and interests. 

One of the needs of the confederacy was a navy. All the old 
navy remained true to the union, and the ships that Confederate 
fought under the Southern flag had to be built or bought, ships of war 
It was to England that the confederacy turned most naturally 



378 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



when it wished to buy vessels. Several fast cruisers were ordered 
of the British shipbuilders, although by the laws of nations Eng- 
land had no right to furnish ships in time of war to a power at war 
with the United States. The British government paid $15,500,000 
after the war for the damage done by the confederate ships she 






'Stars and Bars," 1861 



"Southern Cross," 1861 
Confederate flags 



Official, 1863 



The " Stars and Bars " was given up because it could not easily be distinguished from the 
flag of the union. The " Southern Cross " was the Confederate battle flag. The ground was 
red with white stars on a blue cross. 



allowed to go to sea. The most famous of these ships was the 
Alabama, a very fast and well-built vessel that was allowed to 
get out of the British harbor of Liverpool, although it was well 
known that she was intended for the confederates. She went 
out for a trial trip and did not return. She soon appeared on the 
high seas, heavily armed and flying the confederate flag. She 
destroyed many of the merchant ships of the United States. 

One of the projects of the confederates was to build an iron- 
coated vessel at Norfolk, Virginia. A merchant ship, the Merri- 
Battiebe- fnac, was cut down to the water's edge and a slanting 
tween iron- roof of railroad rails was built over her. Holes in this 
roof allowed heavy cannon to project. In this service 
she was known as the Virginia. Up to that time the ships of the 
world were of wood, and when the Virginia steamed against the 
federal ships near Fortress Monroe she sank three speedily and 
withdrew, expecting to destroy the rest the next day. When she 



MEASURES SUPPORTING THE WAR 



379 



returned, she encountered the Monitor, a strange looking craft 
nicknamed "a cheesebox on a raft." She was built with deck 
level with the water, and in the middle was a revolving round 
turret in which were heavy guns. Deck and turrets were covered 




Battle between the Monitor and the Virginia, or Merrimac 

with iron. Now followed a battle between the two ironclad boats. 
Neither was destroyed, but the Virginia withdrew to Norfolk 
and did not again renew the battle. She was later blown up by 
her owners. This battle was the first encounter in which iron- 
clad vessels were used. It opened a new era in naval warfare. 

One of the most serious disadvantages of the South in this war 
was the blockade. As soon as fighting began President Lincoln 
proclaimed a blockade of the ports of the South. Ships The block- 
were stationed off these ports to see that no ship came ade enforced 
in or went out. The Southern states had many resources for manu- 
facturing, but they had been so much devoted to cotton raising 
that they had not established factories. They depended on the 
outside world for everything except the mere necessities of life. 



380 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

The blockade, therefore, deprived them of many comforts. Coffee, 
sugar, hats, fine clothing, medicines, books, and a thousand things 
which seem to-day a part of our ordinary needs now became very 
scarce. 

To bring in such supplies there appeared a class of ships known 
as blockade runners. They were very fast, built low, and painted 
Blockade as nearly as possible the color of the water. It was 
runners their business to dart through the group of blockading 
ships, and carry supplies into the confederacy or bring cotton out. 
By this means the confederacy got a slender supply of arms, 
powder, medicine, and military supplies, but there was always a 
great lack of other things. 

Both the North and the South made great sacrifices in this 
war. The people on each side were deeply in earnest. The 
Sacrifices ^orth had a population of 22,000,000 and the South 
had 9,000,000, of whom only 5,500,000 were white 
'people. To meet the great numbers the North could bring into 
the field it was necessary in the South to order out every man able 
to bear arms. Surgeons went throughout the country examining 
the men who claimed they were not able to serve in the army. 
There were many communities in which not an able-bodied white 
man was left at home. It is not possible to see how they could have 
carried their resistance farther ; and when the confederacy fell, 
it fell only because it was exhausted. 

In the beginning of the war there were some prominent men in 
the North who did not believe that the union was worth a war. 
Lincoln and They thought that it was better to let the seceding 
the union states go than to waste blood and treasure in over- 
coming them. If the Northern people had foreseen how long the 
war was to last and how bloody it was to be, they would probably 
have refused to go into it. The man who kept the government 
from yielding on this point was Abraham Lincoln. He insisted 
that the union should not be divided. If he had not been so earnest 
about this matter, it seems likely that those who wished to avoid 



MEASURES SUPPORTING THE WAR 



381 



war would have had their way. In that case the territory which 
is now our great repubhc would have been two or more nations. 
It is in this way that we can speak of Lincoln as the preserver of 
the union. 

During the war many Northern men did not understand the 
good qualities of Lincoln, and as the year 1864 approached they 
planned to defeat his reelection. They were mostly Election of 
in the democratic party, and they nominated for ^864 
his opponent General McClellan, who had been a democrat before 
the war. But the great question was union, and as Lincoln 
stood for that above all else, he was reelected by a large majority. 

The people of the South 
were bitterly opposed to Lin- 
coln in 1860, and believed 
that he was a man of the 
worst passions. They had no 
opportunity of knowing his 
real qualities, and Lincoln as- 

they listened too sassinated 

readily to men who were prej- 
udiced. All through the war 
they continued to denounce 
him because it was he who 
kept the union armies batter- 
ing away at the confederacy. 
When the South was at last 
conquered, some of her people 
were very bitter toward Lin- 
coln. One Southern sym- 
pathizer was especially ex- 
cited. He was John Wilkes Booth, an actor, member of a 
family then prominent on the stage. He brooded over the sit- 
uation and came to believe that it was his duty to kill Lincoln. 
He accomplished his object on the night of April 14, 1865, when 




Lincoln's Bookcase 

From the Keyes-Lincoln memorial collection, 
Chicago. 



382 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

the whole country was rejoicing over the surrender of Lee's 
army. Booth entered the president's box at a theater in Wash- 
ington, fired at the president, and leaped to the stage shouting 
"Sic semper tyrannis, so may it be with tyrants!" Lincoln died 
the next day. His murderer was pursued and shot, and four 
persons were hanged on the charge that they had aided him in his 
work. 

This wicked deed threw the whole nation into mourning. Men 
who had opposed Lincoln in politics came to see how he had 
The nation's served the nation in its most trying time, and he was 
loss pronounced a martyr for the cause of the union. The 

South, too, changed its opinion of him. Men began to remember 
that he had never been known to utter a harsh word toward the 
Southern people, although he knew how much he had been abused 
in that part of the country. A prominent Southern general who 
knew Lincoln before the war exclaimed when he heard of Booth's 
deed : " The Sovith has lost her best friend and protector, the surest, 
safest hand to guide and steer her through the breakers ahead!" 
Only a few months had passed before all thinking men in the South 
began to realize that these words were true. 

QUESTIONS 

I. What was the financial task of the government ? In what four ways 
was money obtained? Describe the war tariff. What are government 
bonds? How were they sold? What other form of borrowing was em- 
ployed? What were the greenbacks? How many were outstanding at 
the end of the war ? What was the daily cost of the war ? How much did 
the government owe at the end of the war? 

II. What power had congress over slavery in the states? How did 
Lincoln act in this respect ? Why was he so careful ? What position did 
the abolitionists take? What was the emancipation proclamation? 
When did it go into force ? On what ground was it defended ? What was 
its effect in the South? Why was the thirteenth amendment thought 
necessary ? What does it provide ? When was it completely adopted ? 

III. What was the feeling of Europe in regard to the secession of the 
Southern states? Why did it not help the' South? Why did the 



MEASURES SUPPORTING THE WAR 383 

Southerners think that cotton was "king"? How were they disap- 
pointed? Why did the suffering in England fail to find an expression in 
parUament ? 

IV. What was the condition of the confederate navy? From what 
country did the confederates expect to purchase ships? What was the 
law on this point? How did England finally make satisfaction to the 
United States? Describe the career of the Alabama. 

V. Describe the construction of the Virginia. What did she ac- 
compUsh? How was the Monitor built? Describe the battle between 
these two ships. Why was it important? What was the reason for the 
blockade of Southern ports? How did it affect Southern living? What 
were the blockade runners ? How did they serve the confederacy ? 

^I. How did the strength of the South compare with that of the North ? 
What class of people in the North were at first incUned to agree to the 
South's secession? How did Lincoln's course serve to make the war a 
struggle to preserve the union? Describe the election of 1864. What 
were the issues ? What was the opinion of the South about Lincoln during 
the war? Describe his assassination. How did Southern opinion now 
change ? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Trent Affair ; The Confiscation' Acts ; The Execution of Military 
Law ; The Copperhead Movement ; Lincoln and the Antislavery Move- 
ment, 1861-1862; The Escape of the Alabama; Lincoln and the Border 
States : The Assassination of Lincoln. 



CHAPTER XXVIII 

THE RECONSTRUCTION OF THE SOUTH 

When the war ended, it was generally agreed that government in 
the conquered Southern states was suspended. Three years passed 
Two steps in before it was restored to its former condition. The 
reconstruc- process of restoration is known as reconstruction, and 
^°^ the years during which it was in operation are the 

reconstruction period. There were two steps in restoration. One 
was to readmit to congress the senators and representatives of the 
Southern states, and the other was to reestablish the government 
of the states. The second of these steps was very important, 
for it is the state government that make the laws under which 
individuals ordinarily live, and it was feared in the North that 
these governments would make laws which would undo much that 
had been won by the war. 

This was especially true of the question of the negro's future. 
Free he was by the thirteenth amendment, which everybody was 
What will be sure would be adopted. In fact, the South was willing 
done with to acccpt that. But the negro might escape from 
the negro ? slavery and still not be fully free. He might be de- 
nied the right of owning land, which would mean that he should 
work for the whites as long as he lived, or he might not be treated 
in the courts as white men were treated. Rights like these are 
fixed by the state. The North feared that if the Southern states 
regained full power, they would make laws against the full freedom 
of the negroes. That is why it was insisted that these states be 
kept out of the union until something could be done to make it 

384 



THE RECONSTRUCTION OF THE SOUTH 385 

impossible for the restored states to discriminate against the 
freed negroes. 

Let us now look on the Southern side. The people of the South 
were willing to grant that the war was over and that slavery 
was dead. But they felt that it was a great problem to The South- 
know what to do with the negro in a state of freedom, em side 
He was untaught, and they thought that a very long period must 
pass before he could be educated into a good citizen. The South- 
erner did not dream of making a voter out of a man who was un- 
civilized in Africa and who had not been trained in the ways of 
civilization, except as he got a glimpse of them while a slave. 
The Northern man, on the other hand, thought that the only 
trouble about the negro was that he had been deadened through 
his long enslavement, and that when he was free and had been 
sent to school for some time, all inequalities would disappear. 
He had great confidence in the quick development The reply of 
of the negro under proper circumstances. Each the North 
side was deeply convinced that it was right. 

Lincoln had a plan of reconstruction, and when he died, he had 
started to put it into operation in those parts of the South which 
were occupied by the union armies. He proposed to Lincoln's 
allow a state to hold elections for delegates to a p^^"^ 
constitutional convention, but for a time he would exclude from 
voting the men who had taken most prominent part in the con- 
federate government and armies. When such a convention had 
met and revised the constitution of the state, he was willing to 
withdraw the union troops from its borders and allow it to manage 
its own affairs. 

Lincoln was succeeded by Andrew Johnson, of Tennessee, who 
was elected vice-president in 1864 without a thought pj^gtat- 
that he would be president. He was a democrat be- tempt to re- 
fore the war, but became a union man when his state construct 
seceded. He tried to carry out Lincoln's plan of recon- 
struction. As soon as the war was over he appointed temporary 
2c 



386 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



governors in the Southern states. Constitutional conventions 
were also held which generally accepted the thirteenth amend- 
ment. Then legislatures met 
in these states and began to 
make laws to regulate the lives 
of the negroes. Some of these 
laws were very hard on the 
negro. Mississippi especially 
showed that she had no thought 
of allowing the freed blacks to 
have equal rights with white 
men. It may have been her 
honest belief that the negro was 
not a person who should have 
the same privileges as the 
whites ; but in the North it 
was believed that her laws were 
evidences of a determination 
to keep the negroes 
as nearly in a state 
of slavery as possible. It was 
thought that if congress did not fix his position beyond the power of 
the states to interfere, he would surely fall into a condition of half 
freedom. 

This idea was popular in the North, and the leaders of the re- 
publican party were those who most widely advocated it. In 
Freedmen's 1866 they began to pass laws to protect the negro in 
bureau bill fh^ South from the action of the Southern courts. One 
was the Freedmen's Bureau bill, to allow the trial of many of- 
fenses by negroes before officers of the Freedmen's bureau. This 
bureau was established to have an oversight over the freedmen. 
Its officers were Northern men, and they rarely knew law. Presi- 
dent Johnson vetoed the bill because it interfered with the right 
of the state courts to settle the disputes of all the inhabitants of a 
state, and it was not passed over his veto. 




Severe laws 



Andrew Johnson 



THE RECONSTRUCTION OF THE SOUTH 



387 



The republican leaders in congress were aroused and passed 
what was called the first civil rights act. It provided that certain 
cases in which negroes were concerned should come The civil 
under the jurisdiction of the federal, and not the state, "8^*^ act 
courts. President Johnson vetoed this bill also ; but it was now 
generally believed that he was acting from partiality for the 
South, and he had a smaller following in congress than before. 
The civil rights bill was passed over his veto, a thing which may 
be done by a two-thirds majority. From this time there was 
bitter opposition between the president and congress, and in this 
contest the president generally lost. 

The next step taken by the victorious republicans was to frame 
the fourteenth amendment to the constitution. Its The four- 
object was the same as the civil rights bill. It teenth 
provided that negroes should be citizens of the United *™®° ™®°* 
States, and it stipulated that their rights as citizens should not be 
abridged by any laws passed 
by a state. This was intended 
to make it so that the freed- 
men might take their cases out 
of the state courts and have 
them tried in federal courts, if 
they found that the laws of the 
states discriminated against 
them. The fourteenth amend- 
ment also provided that if a 
state took the vote away from 
any portion of its inhabitants, 
its number of representatives 
in congress should be reduced 
in a like proportion. The 
amendment passed both branches of congress and was sent to the 
states for approval. The North accepted, but the Southern states 
rejected it. Had they accepted it, the moderate Northern men 




Thaddeus Stevens 



388 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

would have been satisfied, and it is believed that would have been 
the end of reconstruction. But the South was desperate, and 
felt that she was being asked to consent to her own chastisement, 
something a proud-spirited people never willingly accept. The 
refusal of the Southern states to vote for the fourteenth amendment 
defeated its ratification for the time. 

The action of the South strengthened the arguments of the 
Northern men who favored negro suffrage. Such people had said 
The acts of from the beginning of the controversy that the only 
1867 way to protect the negro was to give him the ballot. 

They now became the controlling power in congress and passed 
what are known as the reconstruction acts of 1867, passed in 
March and July. The main features of these acts were as follows : 
1. The state governments which had been established in the South 
by President Johnson in 1865 were to be abolished. 2. Military 
governors were to be appointed in their places, army officers, 
who were to keep order in those states for a time. 3. New consti- 
tutional conventions were to be called, the members to be elected 
by all the freemen, including negroes, but not including anybody 
who voluntarily had taken part in the war against the union. 
In other words, all that had been done was to be wiped away and a 
new form of reconstruction was to be adopted by which the negro 
was to help elect constitutional conventions in which was to be 
decided the question of his right to vote. Of course, by this means 
he would be given the right to vote. 4. When the constitutions 
made by these conventions had been adopted by the people who 
could vote in the respective states, when they had been approved 
by congress, and when these states had accepted the fourteenth 
amendment, congress would admit to its own mernbership the 
senators and representatives of the seceding states. When this 
was done, reconstruction would be complete. 

These acts were put into force at once. Five military governors 
The states were appointed and federal troops stationed in all 
readmitted parts of the South while the elections were held. 



THE RECONSTRUCTION OF THE SOUTH 389 

President Johnson did no,t approve of the plan, but it had passed 
congress and he considered it his duty to enforce it. One by one 
the Southern states now adopted the fourteenth amendment and 
made constitutions in which the negro's right to vote was recog- 
nized. In 1868 all but three were received into the union, and in 
1870 these others were admitted. And thus the union was re- 
stored. 

Congress feared that in the future some Southern state might 
change its constitution so as to take away the vote from the 
negro, and to make sure that such a thing was not done The fif- 
the fifteenth amendment was passed. It provided that teenth 
the right to vote should not be denied, on the ground "^^^ ™®°* 
of "race, color, or previous condition of servitude." This amend- 
ment was also ratified by the states. The Southern states were 
under the power of the negroes and voted for the amendment. 

By this time the leaders of congress were bitterly angry at 
President Johnson and impeached him. They mentioned several 
grounds on which they contended that he had violated impeach- 
the laws; but the most important was that he had mentofthe 
tried to remove Stanton from the office of secretary ^^^^^ 
of war, contrary to a law of congress. Johnson said in reply that 
he believed this law was not constitutional, and that he removed 
Stanton in the hope that the supreme court would step in and 
pass judgment on the point. It was admitted that the president 
has the right under the constitution to dismiss cabinet members. 

The charges against the president were prepared by the house 
of representatives, which appointed a committee to conduct the 
trial. In such cases the senate sits as a court to hear 
the evidence and decides whether or not the charges 
are proved. This is the only time in our history that a president 
has been impeached, and it attracted a great deal of attention. As 
the trial progressed sympathy began to turn to Johnson. He was 
so bitterly hated by those who prosecuted him that calm-minded 
people began to think that he was being persecuted. In the end 



k 



390 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

the senate refused to declare him guilty of breaking the laws 
maliciously. The constitution requires a vote of two-thirds of 
the senate to convict in a case of impeachment. If one more 
senator had cast his vote against Johnson, the verdict would 
have been "guilty." 

Let us now see how the reconstruction plan of congress worked 
in the South. Of course, most of the white people in that part 
The feeling of the country felt that a great wrong had been done, 
of the South n ^as as though they had been gagged and bound 
while the thing they most disliked had been forced upon them. 
They were determined to resist the execution of the plan in every 
way possible. 

Moreover, the negro showed from the first that he did not 
vote for the good of the community in which he lived. He was 
not intelligent enough to understand the needs of good government, 
and he fell into the hands of white men who had their own ad- 
vantage in view. He voted as they advised, without knowing 
what he was doing. In a short time the governments of these 
states were filled with grafters, and there followed such a series of 
acts to help railroads, or to make jobs for contractors, or to furnish 
public offices extravagantly, that most of the conscientious re- 
publicans were disgusted. The negro vote enabled the republi- 
cans to carry several of the Southern states ; but the corrupt prac- 
tices that grew up in these states under this kind of management 
put the great majority of the whites against that party and created 
what is known as "the solid South." By this expression is meant 
a united Southern white population which feels that it must vote 
against the republican party in all state politics, and which, being 
united in state affairs, is also strongly democratic in national affairs. 

About 1867 the attention of the country was drawn to a society 
of white men in the South known as the Ku Klux Klan. In reality 
Ku Klux several societies existed with the same object. There 
Klan was much disorder in the country and some of the 

negroes began to show resentment against the whites. Since 



THE RECONSTRUCTION OF THE SOUTH 



391 



the local officers were generally elected by negroes or by whites in 
sympathy with them, the majority of white people felt that some- 
thing else besides the local officers was needed to preserve order. 




Assembling the Ku Klux Klan 
Taken from The Birth of the Nation by the courtesy of the management. 

As a result they formed these secret societies, the purpose of which 
was to restrain the negroes. But we should not forget that in 
these difficult times the majority of the black race remained 
quietly at their homes in peace with the white neighbors. 

The Ku Klux originated in fun. A number of young men of 
Pulaski, Tennessee, all of them having been in the confederate 
army, organized a secret society, the chief object of 
which was to amuse themselves initiating members. 
They had their initiations in an old house which was said to be 



392 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

haunted. When the negroes saw the windows of this house 
filled with light at midnight and heard sounds of laughter coming 
from it, they were terrified, and it was noticed that they were sub- 
dued in appearance. This gave the members of the society the 
idea of increasing the terror of the negroes. They adopted ghostly 
costumes, draped their horses in white sheets, and rode silently 
through the streets at night. They gave it out that they were the 
spirits of confederate soldiers who, having observed that the 
negroes were inclined to misbehave, were come back as a warning 
of what might happen if there was not better conduct. 

After a short time the effects of this wore away. The negroes 

soon ceased to fear ghosts they saw so frequently. Then the 

Ku Klux resorted to more forceful methods. A 

Its Visits 

negro supposed to be a leader in disorders would be 
visited in the night, taken from his house, and whipped in the 
way in which the unmanageable slaves were whipped before the 
war. This kind of treatment, it is said, had a very quieting 
effect on the state of society around Pulaski. When the rumor of 
what had occurred here went abroad, many adjoining communities 
organized Ku Klux Klans of their own. 

At first the Klan was satisfied to investigate each case before 
punishment, and it is probable that most of the men who were 
whipped, or otherwise dealt with, had been doing 
s seven y ^^^ things they were charged with doing. But there 
was a tendency to act with increasing severity. Not only negroes, 
but white men who were supposed to aid them, were whipped or 
tarred and feathered. So bad did this become that the best of the 
members of the Klan began to withdraw, which only left the 
harsher men inside the Klan to do as they wished. Things went 
so far that the men at the head of the organization decided to 
disband it ; but their orders were not obeyed in all localities. It 
was not until congress appointed a committee to inquire into the 
reported outrages in the South that the remnant of the Ku Klux 
Klan was finally disbanded. It undoubtedly did some good in its 



THE RECONSTRUCTION OF THE SOUTH 393 

day, but it was a dangerous example, and it is to be hoped that 
we shall never have another such organization. It disappeared 
about 1873, 

Two words of contempt were freely used in these years in the 
South in these days. They were carpet-bagger and scalawag. The 
former was a Northern man who came South after the carpet- 
war and took part in politics. A carpet bag was a baggers and 
valise made of carpet. It was cheap, and the term scalawags 
carpet-bagger implied that these Northern men were only 
seeking to line their pockets at the expense of the South. Many of 
these men were adventurers, and they deserved all that was said 
about them. But we must not forget that there were others who 
came with the best intentions. Some of them were lawyers, some 
were business men, and some were teachers and ministers ; and 
it was natural that they should be republicans. But the Southern 
people were not much disposed to distinguish between the good 
and bad carpet-baggers. The same thing was true of the scala- 
wags, who were Southern-born men who joined the republican 
party after the war. Some of them were thoroughly convinced 
that the best interest of the South was to accept the republican 
party. Undoubtedly others were as ready to use their political 
power to make money for themselves as any of the carpet-baggers. 

Many republicans thought that their party would gain a strong 
position in the South when the negroes were allowed to vote ; 
but they were to be disappointed. By 1870 all the overthrow 
Southern states had been readmitted to the union, of the 
When one of them came in, the former confederates °®^''° voters 
within it were allowed to vote, with the exception of a small 
number who had been very prominent, and these were gradually 
restored to their old privileges. But the white men generally 
went into the democratic party, whose cry was the recovery of the 
state from the party of the negro, the carpet-bagger, and the 
scalawag. This cry made a strong appeal to the whites, who did 
all they could to overcome the votes of the negroes. They worked 



394 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

SO hard that in 1877 the last Southern state passed out of the hands 
of the repubhcans, although for many years afterwards a small 
number of republican congressmen continued to be elected in the 
South. 

About twenty-five years after the overthrow of carpet-bag 
governments the Southern states passed amendments to their con- 
stitutions providing that no one should vote who could not read 
and write or did not own certain property. Most of the negroes 
thus lost the right to vote. This, it was held, did not conflict 
with the fifteenth amendment to the federal constitution, since 
that amendment says that no man shall be kept from voting 
on account of "race, color, or previous condition of servitude." 
One result is that the large majority of the republican party 
in the South is now composed of white men, another is that 
election frauds are no longer alleged to exist as common occur- 
rences. 

QUESTIONS 

I. What was reconstruction? What two steps were there in recon- 
struction? Why was the second-named step important? In what way 
might a Southern state limit the freedom of the negro? What was the 
demand of the North on this point? In what special form did this 
demand finally take shape? Why was it thought that the negro should 
have the ballot ? How did the Southerners feel about the capacity of the 
negro ? What was the reply of the Northern men ? 

II. What was Lincoln's plan of reconstruction? Where was it first 
put into operation? What were Johnson's ideas on reconstruction? 
How did he proceed to carry them out? Describe the laws now jjassed 
in the South in regard to the negroes. How did the North interpret these 
laws? 

III. What political party controlled congress ? What was its position 
in regard to the negro? What was the Freedmen's bureau? What was 
the Freedmen's bureau bill of 1866? On what ground did the president 
veto it? Describe the first civil rights act. What happened to its veto 
by the president ? To what did his opponents attribute the veto ? 

IV. How did the fourteenth amendment guard the rights of the 
negroes? What did it say about denying the ballot to a portion of the 



THE RECONSTRUCTION OF THE SOUTH 395 

inhabitants of a state? What would have been the result if the South 
had accepted this amendment ? Why did it refuse to accept ? 

V. What was the effect in the North of the refusal of the South to " 
accept the amendment ? For what purpose were the reconstruction acts of 
1867 passed? What did these acts provide? When was reconstruction 
to be complete ? Show how this plan was put into execution. How was 
the fifteenth amendment adopted? What did it provide? 

VI. What was the most important charge against Johnson in the 
impeachment trial? What was his reply to it? Why did he think his 
constitutional power was imperiled by the act regarding the dismissal of a 
cabinet member? Describe the trial. What was the result? 

VII. How did the Southern whites look upon reconstruction under the 
acts of 1867? What determination was made by the whites? How did 
the negro show that he did not know how to vote properly? What was 
the effect on Southern politics? Explain the term "solid South." 

VIII. What was the Ku Klux Klan? How was it defended by the 
Southerners? Describe the attitude of the negroes. How did the Ku 
Klux originate? What was its original purpose? How did it become a 
society to keep order? Describe its visits. Show how it became too 
severe. How did it end? 

IX. Who were called carpet-baggers ? How did the term originate ? 
Who were the scalawags ? Distinguish between good and bad men of 
each class. ' 

X. How were the republicans disappointed about the negro vote in 
the South? What was the main object of the democrats when the 
Southern states were readmitted ? What was the nature of the suffrage 
amendments later passed by the Southern states? Why did they not 
violate the fifteenth amendment? What two results have followed? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The New Black Code of the South ; The Working of the Freedmen's 
Bureau ; The Policy of Thaddeus Stevens ; The Impeachment of Andrew 
Johnson ; The Ku Klux Klan ; The South Carolina Legislature under 
Negro Control. 



CHAPTER XXIX 



political 
issue 



THE POLITICAL HISTORY UNDER JOHNSON AND GRANT 

The elections of 1864 were carried by republicans on the ground 
that the union was in danger. After the war ended the union 

The great was no longer in 
danger, and the chief 
doctrine of the re- 
publican party became the 
reconstruction of the South in 
such a way as to preserve all 
that had been won by the war. 
We have already seen that the 
party had its way in congress 
and passed its plan of recon- 
struction in spite of the veto 
of President Johnson. So much 
time was consumed in this 
matter that very little else was 
taken up. 

Another thing that has much 
interest for us is the purchase of 
Alaska Alaska from Russia 

purchased in 1867. The price 
agreed upon was $7,000,000 which many people thought a very 
large price for what was believed to be a frozen wilderness. It was 
further from the center of the American population than India seems 
to the people of 1915. Scoffers said that if Alaska ever became a 
state, a representative would take all his time in going and coming 

396 




William H. Seward 



POLITICAL HISTORY UNDER JOHNSON AND GRANT 397 

from his constituency to the capital. No one foresaw the im- 
provements in travel that would come with the construction of 
railroads to the Pacific. Neither did we know that Alaska was 
rich in gold, coal, and other minerals. It has been worth to us 
many times as much as the price paid. Its purchase was chiefly 
due to the foresight of William H. Seward, secretary of state. 

In 1868 the election of a president was the most important 
thing. The republicans disliked Johnson so much that they could 
not think of nominating him. They put forward The election 
General Grant, whose military successes made him °^ '^68 
very popular. The democrats nominated Governor Seymour, of 
New York. They were very unpopular at this time, because 
they had opposed the way the war had been conducted. Some 
of them had denounced Lincoln so bitterly that they were arrested 
for treason. During the war they were freely called "copper- 
heads," a term of great reproach. Now that the war was over 
they showed much sympathy with the South and opposed the re- 
publican plan of reconstruction. In spite of the fact that their 
candidate had a fine record, they were badly beaten. General 
Grant received two hundred and fourteen electoral votes and Sey- 
mour received onlj^ eighty. 

At the same time the republicans carried both houses of con- 
gress and were able to do as they pleased. All went smoothly 
for two years, and then a split began to appear. A The liberal 
group of republicans became dissatisfied. They felt republicans 
that the interests of the people were neglected in order to advance 
the interests of the politicians, and they began to demand reforms. 
Some of the leaders of the reform movement were men who had 
once been the warmest supporters of Lincoln. They were es- 
pecially strong in Missouri, where they went so far as to unite 
with the democrats and elect a governor in 1870. President 
Grant was not in favor of the reformers. He was a practical man 
and thought that the men who criticized the politicians were only 
hard to please. He was renominated by the republicans in 1872. 



398 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



The reformers called themselves liberal republicans and tried to 
found a new party. They made an alliance with the demo- 
crats, and both parties voted for 
Horace Greeley, editor of the New 
York Tribune, for president. But 
Election of no One could break down 
1872 the popularity of Grant, 

and he was reelected. Greeley was 
mercilessly ridiculed in this cam- 
paign. Fun was made of his old gray 
coat, his white hat, and his speeches. 
He took it to heart most seriously 
and died three weeks after the elec- 
tion was decided. He carried only 
six states, and they were in the South, 
states which had shaken off negro 
rule and were solidly democratic. 

One of the most notable events 
occurring while Grant was presi- 
dent was the settlement of the claims we had against England for 
The Ala- allowing the confederate states to purchase ships of 
hama claims ^yar in England. We held that she was responsible for 
all the damage that was done by such vessels, and we presented 
our claims with a long list of ships that had been destroyed. As 
the confederate cruiser Alabama had destroyed most of the ships 
for which payment was demanded, all the American claims were 
spoken of as "the Alabama claims." After a great deal of dis- 
cussion it was at last agreed, 1871, that the whole matter should 
be left to five persons, for arbitration. They met in Geneva, one 
an Englishman, one an American, and one each from Switzerland, 
Italy, and Brazil. All but the Englishman voted to support the 
American side of the case, and decided that Great Britain should 
hand to our government $15,500,000, with which we agreed to 
satisfy all the claims of the men who had suffered. The decision 




Horace Greeley 



POLITICAL HISTORY UNDER JOHNSON AND GRANT 399 



was very unpopular in Great Britain, but the rest of the world 
received it with pleasure. The other nations did not know at what 
time they might be at war ; and they knew that if the decision 
had gone the other way, England might have sold ships to their 
enemies in time of war and worked a great amount of damage. 
As it was, a principle was established at Geneva which will live 
a long time. In time of war a neutral nation must not furnish 
ships of war to one of the powers that are fighting. 

Another event of Grant's administration was the Vii-ginius 
affair, which for a while seemed about to get us into war with 
Spain. At that time there was in progress in Cuba what The Virgin- 
was known as the "ten years' war," a struggle of the '"* 
native Cubans to overthrow the rule of Spain. The Virginius 
was a vessel used to smuggle 
arms into the island for the 
rebels. She carried an Ameri- 
can flag and was registered as 
an American ship ; and the cap- 
tain was an American citizen. 
She many times escaped the 
Spanish ships watching on the 
coast of Cuba, but in 1873 she 
was captured and taken into 
Santiago harbor, where fifty- 
three of the men on her were 
shot as pirates. Among the 
victims were eight Americans 
and some British and French 
citizens. They were not given 
a fair trial, and when the Ameri- 
can consul protested against what was done, the protest was 
ignored. 

When the news of this affair came to the United States, there was 
an outburst of wrath. The people had much sympathy for the 




Hamilton Fish 



400 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

Cubans, and they now demanded that we should declare war 
against Spain and drive her from Cuban soil. But there were 
War threat- calmer heads in Washington, and the calmest of all 
ened was Hamilton Fish, the secretary of state. He managed 

the affair very wisely, and got Spain to agree to make apologies 
if a fair investigation showed that the Virginius was an American 
ship. When the facts were known, it was evident that the Vir- 
ginius was not a real American vessel. She was owned by the 
rebels, and her registration was, therefore, fraudulent. We with- 
drew our demand for an apology, and Spain gave $80,000 to 
the families of the Americans who had been shot. This incident 
shows how well it is to act coolly before going into a war. President 
Grant approved all that Fish did in the Virginius affair, and soon 
the people who had clamored for war were praising the calmness of 
Secretary Fish. 

While Grant was president the country showed an increasing 
amount of sympathy for the South, and it came out in the passage 
Amnesty for of the amnesty act of 1872. There were then 160,000 
confeder- former confederates who could not vote or hold office, 
ates jj^g ^g^ Qf ]^g72 gave a general pardon to all but the 

most prominent men in the class, thus leaving about five hundred 
still without the right of suffrage. As the years passed these others 
were gradually pardoned, and finally a general law gave amnesty 
to all in 1898. The South received amnesty in the spirit in which 
it was offered ; but the gift was so much delayed that it did not 
wipe out all the feeling the reconstruction period had created. 
The pardoned confederates were the natural leaders of the South, 
and depriving them of their votes had only increased their influence 
among the people with whom they lived. 

About this time the country received a severe shock when it 
learned of several political scandals, which for a while made the 
PoUticai people think that worse evils existed than came to 
scandals hght. Grant himself was not responsible for these 
matters. But it was generally agreed that if he had not listened 



POLITICAL HISTORY UNDER JOHNSON AND GRANT 401 

too easily to some of his political advisers, he would have been more 
careful to appoint men who would have been free from any 
suggestion of wrongdoing. The most distrusted of his advisers 
was Benjamin F. Butler, who seems to have been acting merely 
for his own interests in most that he did ; but Grant had confidence 
in Butler. 

In 1874 a new secretary of the treasury was appointed. He 
began to look into the affairs of his office and found that his 
predecessor had been very lax. One of the things that The whisky 
came to light was a series of frauds by a ring of whisky "ng 
distillers in St. Louis. The tax on liquors is paid at the distilleries 
at so much a gallon. What happened here was that the distillers 
made false reports of the number of gallons manufactured and 
paid a smaller sum than they should have paid. They gave a part 
of the money they withheld to the officers who should have seen 
that they paid tax on every gallon manufactured. It was supposed 
that the government lost a million dollars a year through these 
frauds. The men responsible for them were indicted, and some 
were punished. Among those imprisoned was the man who had 
held the office of supervisor of internal revenue. It was believed 
that several of the chief offenders escaped punishment. 

While the public were still talking of this affair, they learned that 
a member of the president's cabinet was to be impeached on the 
charge of taking money for making an appointment The Belknap 
to office. The man concerned was Belknap, secretary frauds 
of war. The position of post trader at Fort Sill, Indian Territory, 
was a very profitable one ; for the trader supplied the Indians at a 
handsome profit. In 1875 it was learned that for five years the 
man who held the place had been paying a large sum annually 
to Marsh, a friend of Mrs. Belknap, and that Marsh gave half 
of what he got to Mrs. Belknap, and after her death to her husband. 
Marsh had thus given up $20,000 to the secretary and the secre- 
tary's wife. These facts became known, and Belknap was im- 
peached by the house of representatives. As the vote was about 



402 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

to be taken he sent his resignation to the president, who accepted 
it at once. The impeached secretary was finally acquitted on 
the ground that a secretary who was no longer in office could not 
be convicted on a charge of wrongdoing in office. Grant was 
severely criticized for accepting Belknap's resignation while charges 
were about to be made against him. 

These scandals in politics seemed to show that something was 
radically wrong. A great many people thought they grew out 
Civil service of the spoils system. When men were appointed to 
reform office merely for political reward, it was inevitable that 

some bad men should hold office. The remedy seemed to be to 
appoint officials solely on merit, as they were appointed in most 
other countries. Thus arose a demand for civil service reform. 
It was proposed that persons who desired government posi- 
tions, except the highest, should first be examined to see 
if they were prepared to take the office. Having passed the ex- 
aminations, they were to be appointed in order of merit without 
regard to party. 

When Grant was running for the presidency in 1868, he an- 
nounced that he w^ould support civil service reform. After he was 
Grant and elected, a law was passed to allow the president to 
the re- make rules for the appointment of persons to the civil 

formers service, and $25,000 a year was appropriated for two 
years to pay the expenses of applying the rules he should make. 
Grant was in sympathy with the reformers and named a civil 
service commission which reported rules for the examination 
of candidates for appointment. He ordered that these rules be 
put into force in the departments in Washington and in the federal 
offices in New York. Now was seen how deep were the roots of 
the old system. Members of congress had been in the habit of 
getting the president to appoint their friends, but they found 
that their friends must stand examinations as other people. They 
complained to Grant and sometimes he made exceptions to his rules 
to satisfy the congressmen. This course displeased the reformers, 



POLITICAL HISTORY UNDER JOHNSON AND GRANT 403 



who criticized the president bitterly. George Wilham Curtis, the 
head of the civil service commission, resigned as a means of 
calling the attention of the people to what he considered Grant's 
repudiation of civil service reform. The president naturally 
became angry, and the congressmen, most of whom did not like the 
rules, seized the opportunity to strike a blow at the cause of re- 
form by withholding money for the examinations. All this hap- 
pened from 1871 to 1874. It is hard to say just who was most to 
blame, but the effect was to make the reformers more hostile to the 
leaders of the republican party than they had been before. We 
shall see that civil service reform continued to occupy the attention 
of the people and finally 
triumphed. It was a much- 
needed reform. Under the 
spoils system, when a new presi- 
dent took office, nothing could 
be done for months but remove 
and appoint officials; and the 
official no sooner got to know 
his duties than he was turned 
out to make room for some one 
else. 

The many criticisms that 
were being made of the men who 
led the republican party gave 
the democrats the hope that 

they could triumph. Democratic 

In 1874 they carried successes 
the elections for the house of 
representatives by a large ma- 
jority. It was the first defeat 
the republicans had met since they elected Lincoln in 1860. It 
increased the expectations of the democrats and they began to look 
forward to the presidential election of 1876. In 1874 they also 




Samuel J. Tilden 



404 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

elected Samuel J. Tilden governor in New York. He was an able 
lawyer who had rendered the public a great service by his hard 
work in overthrowing the corrupt Tweed ring. It was foreseen 
that he would be the democratic candidate for the presidency, and 
it was known that his popularity with the reformers would give 
him an important independent vote. 

We cannot understand how much this work of Tilden's im- 
pressed the people of his day unless we know how great was the 
-, ,,g evil doing of Tweed and his friends. They had obtained 
frauds in control of New York City by a system of bribery and 
New York by the support of the ignorant vote. They befriended 
* ^ the immigrants and found work for the unemployed, 

but they expected that all who received their help would vote 
for Tweed and his friends. By this means they were able to take 
from the treasury many times as much as they needed to pay 
for the acts of assistance they gave to the poor voters. Tweed 
got much of his money by awarding contracts at high prices and 
forcing the contractors to pay him a part of the money paid by 
the city for the contracts. It is said that a man had a bill of 
S5000 against the city. One of the ring told him that the bill 
would be paid if it were $55,000. Immediately the change was 
made and the claimant got his $5000 while the ring took the 
rest, $50,000. The ring decided the county of New York 
needed a new courthouse and ordered it built. When the bills 
had been paid, they amounted to $11,000,000. Investigation 
showed that the work actually cost about three millions ; 
and it was so poorly done that repairs had to be made before 
the courthouse was occupied. The carpeting that was paid 
for to go into this building was enough to carpet the City Hall 
Park three times over. It was never possible to determine how 
much money the ring got : the estimates ran from $45,000,000 to 
$200,000,000. 

Two newspapers, the New York Times and Harper^s Weekly, 
waged a long war against the ring. They charged that the money 



POLITICAL HISTORY UNDER JOHNSON AND GRANT 405 

of the people was being stolen, but at first they could not prove 
it. Tweed' was able to get three rich landowners to look at 
the books and swear that the city's accounts were kept The ring 
properly. It was said that he reduced their taxes to broken up 
reward them for their services to him. He offered one of the edi- 
tors who denounced him $5,000,000 to cease attacking, and to 
another $1,000,000 to be quiet. When these editors refused to 
accept the bribes, he could not understand what they were aiming 
at. At last complete evidence was obtained against the ring. 
Samuel J. Tilden was one of the leading lawyers in New York. He 
took it upon himself to break up the ring, and did not rest until he 
saw Tweed in prison and other members of the corrupt group 
in flight or locked up in jail. He was a democrat, and his work 
against the ring so raised him in the esteem of the people that in 
1874 he was elected governor by a majority of 50,000. It was be- 
cause of his great popularity that he became the democratic 
nominee for president in 1876. The republican party nominated 
Rutherford B. Hayes, of Ohio. 

The election was a close one. At first it seemed that Tilden 
was chosen. He carried the important Northern state of New 
York and the early returns showed that he had carried a disputed 
the South. But later returns showed that three South- election 
ern states. South Carolina, Louisiana, and Florida, were disputed. 
One electoral vote in Oregon was also disputed. If Tilden got 
one of these disputed votes, he was elected. If Hayes got them 
all, he was elected. The question was, who should say whether 
the disputed votes were really democratic or republican votes. 
The constitution does not say how a dispute like this is to be 
settled. It only says that the president of the senate shall receive 
the electoral votes and count them. 

The weeks following the election were filled with threats, and it 
began to look as though the two political parties would become 
so angry that the members would take up arms against one 
another. Finally congress adopted a compromise. A commission 



k 



406 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

was appointed to hear all the evidence and decide how the dis- 
puted votes should be counted. It contained five men from the 
The eiec- house of representatives, five from the senate, and 
torai com- five judges of the supreme court of the United States, 
mission ^g j^ turned out, eight of these fifteen men were re- 
publicans, and seven were democrats, and when they met, they 
voted according to their party feelings. The eight republicans 
voted to give every disputed vote to Hayes, and the seven demo- 
crats voted to give to Tilden the votes from Louisiana and Florida, 
and to Hayes the votes from South Carolina and Oregon. The 
result was that Hayes was declared president. Many people 
thought that he should not have had the office. He was a man 
of great personal honesty, and it is certain that he would not have 
taken an office if he had not believed he was elected to it. 

QUESTIONS 

I. What was the dominant political issue immediately after the war? 
Describe the purchase of Alaska. How was it criticized? How has the 
purchase been justified by later events? Describe the nominations for 
th6 presidency in 1868. Why was the democratic party unpopular? 
What was the result of the election? 

II. How did the republican party come to be divided? What did 
the reformers stand for? In what state were they very strong? De- 
scribe the election of 1872. To what was Greeley's death due? 

III. How did the Alabama claims arise? To whom was the dispute 
finally left? What was the decision? Why were other nations in- 
terested? What principle was here established? What was the ten 
years' war ? For what purpose was the Virginius used ? What seemed 
to show that she was an American ship ? What followed when she was 
captured ? How did the American people take the news of the events in 
Santiago? How was war avoided? How did the affair end? 

IV. Describe the amnesty act of 1872. Why was it unwise to exclude 
so many of the former confederates from office ? Was Grant in any sense 
responsible for the political scandals that were discovered while he was 
president ? What was Butler's influence over Grant ? 

V. Describe the operations of the St. Louis whisky ring. What was 
done with the guilty ones? What was the ground of the Belknap im- 



POLITICAL HISTORY UNDER JOHNSON AND GRANT 407 

peachment ? What were the facts in the case ? How did Belknap escape 
punishment ? Why was Grant criticized for his connection with Belknap? 

VI. What was the spoils system? How did it work? What was the 
purpose of the civil service reformers? What method of appointment 
did they wish to see tried? What was Grant's early attitude toward 
civil service reform? What step did congress take? How was the 
spirit of the law sometimes violated? What criticism was made of 
Grant? How did congress seize the opportunity to strike a blow at the 
reformers ? 

VII. What effect did these things have on the election of 1874? 
What hopes were created for the democrats? How did the election in 
New York have a bearing on the situation? How did Tweed get control 
of New York City ? Describe his method of getting money. How much 
are he and his friends supposed to have secured? Describe Tweed's 
attempts to defeat investigation. How was he at last run down and 
punished? How did Tilden's part in this process affect his political 
reputation ? 

VIII. Whom did the democrats nominate for the presidency in 1876? 
Who was the republican nominee? Describe the election and show how 
the result was in dispute. What is the provision of the constitution about 
counting the vote? What compromise was made? How did the com- 
mission decide the dispute? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Liberal Republicans ; The Origin of Civil Service Reform ; The 
Virginius Affair ; The St. Louis Whisky Ring ; The Settlement of the 
Alabama Claims ; The Work of the Electoral Commission ; The Ex- 
pulsion of the French from Mexico. 



CHAPTER XXX 
THE GROWTH OF THE NATION AFTER THE WAR 

When the war ended, the army of the union numbered about 
one milHon men. Some European writers predicted that these 
The army men would never be wilhng to disband and go quietly 
disbanded to their homes. The prediction was a fooHsh one ; for 
the American soldiers wanted nothing more than to get out of 
the army and settle down as farmers, mechanics, and business 
men. As soon as they were dislianded they returned to their 
homes and became workers again in the fields of peace. So large 
a number of men thrown back into the tasks of business greatly 
increased production in all the forms of industry. 

One of the causes of prosperity was the homestead law, made 
in 1862. It provided that the government would give a farm of 
The home- 1^0 acres to any man who would settle on it. If a 
stead law in soldier had been thrifty, he had saved enough of his pay 
operation ^^ |-,^y ^^le stock and tools he needed to begin work on 
his farm. At this time wheat and corn were dear, and they re- 
mained so for five years or more on account of the wars in Europe. 
Thus it happened that a great many of the old soldiers, and many 
other people, moved to the grain-growing West in the years be- 
tween 1865 and 1870, establishing farms and increasing the annual 
yield of wheat by a great amount. 

These years were also favorable to the manufacturers. The 
war tariff was very high, and it was retained after the advent of 
Growth of peace. It kept out cheap foreign goods, and the Ameri- 
manufac- can factories ran on full time and sold at high prices, 
tures They enlarged their plants and sold more goods than 

ever. Wages also went up, for the factory owners were prosper- 

408 



THE GROWTH OF THE NATION AFTER THE WAR 409 

ing so greatly that they could afford to pay higher wages. When 
the farmers, manufacturers, and wage earners had money, pros- 
perity came to merchants, bankers, railroad men, and all others 
in the business world. 

The best grain-growing section of the country was in the North- 
west. Illinois, Wisconsin, Michigan, Minnesota, Iowa, Nebraska, 
Kansas, and Missouri were now going through a rapid The North- 
development. Railroads were built into the grain west 
counties, farmers moved in, and fields replaced the prairies. The 
population of these eight states grew very rapidly. In 1860 it was 
5,601,940. Ten years later, in spite of the losses of the war, it 
was 8,621,033. Of course, this gain was not made without a 
great deal of immigration. 

The higher prices of wages in America attracted great multitudes 

of laborers from Europe. From 1865 to 1875 the average number 

was 350,000 a year. At that time it was the northern ^ 

. . Immigration 

countries of Europe that sent us the largest portions of 

our immigrants. They came from Norway, Sweden, Germany, 
and Denmark, as well as from Ireland and Scotland. The immi- 
gration from the southern countries of Europe was not at that 
time as large as at present. Some of the immigrants settled on 
the farms of the West. The Swedes and Norwegians were farmers 
in their own countries, and went readily to farming regions in the 
United States. But most of the others preferred to settle in the 
towns and manufacturing districts. They were too poor to buy 
land or to settle it if it were given them. Weekly wages appealed 
to them. Their course was to take the vacant places of Eastern 
men who had moved to the West. 

In the South was no such state of prosperity. The people had 
suffered great loss of wealth through the war. Those who owned 

slaves suddenly found themselves deprived of their , , „ . 

. In the South 

value. Most of the people had felt it their duty to 

invest all their money in confederate bonds and currency while 

the war was being fought, and after the war, bonds and money 



THE GROWTH OF THE NATION AFTER THE WAR 411 

were worthless. The banks and all who had money to lend 
had become bankrupt. The Southern farmers were thus without 
stock, tools, or money to begin life again, and their capitalists 
were unable to lend. 

To add to their troubles, the freedmen were much disturbed by 
the hope -that the government would take the lands of the former 
masters and distribute them among the former slaves. 
A rumor got abroad that at Christmas, 1865, each negro 
man would receive "forty acres and a mule." Nobody knows 
just how the idea started, but for a time it made the negroes 
unwilling to work for wages. When they did not get the lands 
they had expected, they were dissatisfied. Soon afterwards they 
secured the right to vote, and then came the Ku Klux troubles. 
All this kept laborers excited, and the farmers suffered as a conse- 
quence. 

It was at this time that the cropping system became established 
in the South. The landowner did not have enough money to hire 
laborers, and so he agreed with a negro man to cultivate The crop- 
a small tract of land on shares. The landlord would ping system 
generally furnish the tools, team, and seed, and at the end of the 
year have half of the yield. If the negro was thrifty and owned 
his own team, he usually had three-fourths of what was made. This 
system is widely used in the South to this day. 

In these days began to appear a new class of whites. Men 
who had owned no land before the war now found that it could 
be purchased cheaply. They seized the opportunity and bought 
as much as they could pay for, and as the old planter class dis- 
appeared a new class of well-to-do farmers took their places. This 
process has gone on steadily during the last fifty years. Very 
few of the old planter class survived without losing a large part 
of their holdings; but in their places has grown up a new class 
whose success has been made under the new conditions. 

One of the noted changes that the war made possible was 
the building of towns. Under the old system there was not much 



412 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

retail trade. The large planters shipped their cotton and tobacco 
to a few central trading ports and had supplies sent them in return. 
Trading They paid no wages, and there was not much money 
towns in circulation in the communities. Under the new con- 

ditions the wages of the negro were spent in the small stores of the 
neighborhood in which he lived. The large planters no longer 
existed, and the small farmers were also content to sell their crops 
and buy their supplies at home. The result was that merchants 
prospered, trading towns began to grow into busy little centers 
of business, and the South began to have a larger town life than 
it had before the war. In this way the prosperity of the South 
was gradually restored after about fifteen years of great suffering. 
• The progress which came to every part of the North and West 
in these years produced a great deal of railroad building. This 
Building was especially true in the grain-growing region, where 
railroads new lines were extended into the unsettled parts in the 
behef that settlers would follow in great numbers. It was thought 
that the money received from the grain crops would pay the 
freight charges and enable the railroads to make large profits. So 
rapidly were railroads built that there was not enough capital 
in the countiy to pay for them, and money had to be borrowed in 
Europe. 

For a time all went well, and then there came a sudden check 
of prosperity. First, the wars in Europe ended in 1871 and the 
men who had been in the armies were sent to the grain fields, so 
that Europe began to raise her own grain again. At the same 
time some vast grain fields were opened in southern Russia, which 
produced wheat more cheaply than it could be produced by our 
farmers. The result was that the price of grain began to fall in 
1871, and in 1872 it fell still more. So great was the confidence 
of the Western farmer in wheat that he did not reduce his 
acreage. He planted more and more each year, while the price 
kept going down. From 1872 to 1879 was a period of hard 
times for the farmers. 



THE GROWTH OF THE NATION AFTER THE WAR 413 

Of course, the fall of wheat had its effect on the grain-carrying 
railroads. They did not get enough profits to pay the interest 
on the money they had borrowed. Then their stocks The panic 
and bonds began to go down, and it was impossible to «* ^^73 
borrow enough money to carry on the building operations that 
had been planned. Jay Cooke and Company was the greatest 
banking house in the country. It was furnishing money to build 
the Northern Pacific Railroad, and taking the bonds of the road, 
which it expected to sell. When the bonds began to fall, the house 
borrowed money in Europe and went on lending it to the railroad. 
After a time its hands were full of Northern Pacific bonds which it 
could not sell, and the European creditors demanded their money. 
There was nothing for this great house to do but to declare that 
it could not pay its debts and close up its business. This impor- 
tant failure brought on what is known as the panic of 1873, one of 
the great panics in our history. Before it was over many a busi- 
ness man had to close up his business, losing all he had. It came 
because the period just before it was a very prosperous one in 
which there had been too much speculation. All the important 
panics in our history have followed periods of great prosperity and 
excessive speculation. 

The panic of 1873 and the six years of hard times that followed 
it did not destroy the healthy growth of business. Such periods 
usually are marked by moderate progress. In this Progress in 
case there was too much energy in the business life of ^"^ ^^^^ 
the country for the people to suffer great hardship. Population 
grew as rapidly as ever, railroads were built as the conditions 
demanded, and manufacturing and agriculture went forward 
steadily. The period of hard times was only a period in which 
there was not the rapid boom of the period just before 1873. 

During all these years from the war to 1880 the finances of 
the national government were in excellent condition. The national 
The national debt in 1865 was $2,758,000,000. At debt 
the beginning of the war it had been only $57,000,000; and to 



414 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

many people living in 1865 it seemed that it would never be paid. 
But it was so well managed that in 1868 the government had wiped 
away $519,000,000, and people no longer predicted it would never 
be paid. By 1880 it was reduced to $1,919,300,000; and in that 
y;ear began a period of very rapid payment. Between 1880 and 
1890 the amount paid was more than a billion dollars. No other 
nation has paid off a great debt so rapidly. 

Meanwhile, much was being said about the tariff, a subject 
which is still discussed very earnestly in the field of politics. We 
The war have seen that it was necessary during the war to 
tariff impose very high taxes. It was expected that they 

would be lowered when peace returned. In fact, they were 
lowered on some things, but on most articles the duties remained 
what they had been during the war. The reason given for this 
was that to lower the tariff would injure manufactures. There 
can be but little doubt that to lower the tariff on articles highly 
protected would mean smaller profits for the manufacturers of 
those articles ; and it would probably mean that the laborers in 
Argument such factories would not get as high wages as they got 
for, under a high tariff. Thus, both the factory owners 

and their employees were interested in having the tariff remain 
as it was. 

On the other hand, the farmers and other people who did not 
depend for their living on the factories would have to pay higher 
prices for the manufactured articles they bought. This 
^ question then arose : Should we tax the people who 

were not protected to benefit the people who were protected? 
No one seriously objected to a tariff that would raise the revenue 
needed to carry on the government, and that, they said, would 
give the manufacturers all the protection they needed. Much 
more was said, but these were the chief arguments, and they will 
show that there was something to be said on each side of the 
question. Those sections of the country in which manufactures 
abounded were strongly for maintaining the high tariff. They 



THE GROWTH OF THE NATION AFTER THE WAR 415 

saw that to lessen the production of the factories would throw men 
out of employment, close up the least prosperous of the factories, 
lower the prices of real estate, and injure every kind of business 
that got a part of its money from the mills. The New England 
states, the Middle states, and some of the states north of the Ohio 
River made up the manufacturing section of the country, and here 
protection had its strongest friends. The people of the South 
were almost entirely farmers, and the same thing was true of the 
people living west of the Mississippi. They felt, for the most 
part, that it would be better to have cheaper merchandise, and 
they did not wish to contribute to the prosperity of people in 
remote parts of the country. 

The republican party became the defender of protection and 
the democrats the defenders of a lower tariff ; although there 
were always a few democratic representatives in con- jj^,^ ^jjg 
gress who opposed a reduction of the duties, and a few parties took 
republicans from the West who wanted to lower the ^'*^®^ 
tariff. In 1870 there was a strong demand for lower rates and a 
bill to that effect was passed, and in 1872 another bill passed, 
taking off ten per cent of all duties. Soon after it went into opera- 
tion came the panic of 1873, which caused the people to import 
less merchandise than before. By this means the money received 
by the government for duties fell off so that there was not enough 
for expenses. For this reason it was believed necessary Three tariff 
to raise the tariff again. In a bill passed in 1875 the ^^^ 
ten per cent taken off in 1872 was restored. When this was done, 
the tariff question was dropped for several years. 

During these years the business men of the country were much 
concerned about the fluctuation in the price of gold. If a man 
of that day said that his horse was worth two hundred Depreciation 
dollars, he would mean two hundred dollars in green- of green- 
backs. That is, values were ordinarily expressed in ^**^^^ 
greenbacks. But the government did not give specie for the 
greenbacks, and they were never worth par in gold. Often two 



416 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

hundred dollars in gold would not be given for less than two hun- 
dred and seventy-five dollars in greenbacks. The practice had 
grown up for most notes, and some accounts, to be written payable 
in gold. Thus it came about that when a man had to pay such 
notes or accounts, he must find a dealer in specie and pay him 
what he asked for the gold. It was very annoying, for one never 
knew when he signed a note payable in gold just what he would 
have to pay to get gold when the time came to settle. When he 
signed the note, gold might be worth 110 per cent., and when he 
came to pay, it might be selling for 120 per cent. The few men 
who had most of the gold in the country kept it close in their 
hands and managed to put up the price when there was great need 
for it in the market. All this trouble would disappear the moment 
the government began to redeem the greenbacks in gold on demand. 
In 1875 congress passed a law to begin to redeem the green- 
backs in specie on January 1, 1879. Bonds were to be sold for 
Resumption S^ld until there was in the treasury as much as $100,- 
of specie 000,000 in gold. From this fund the government was 
payment ^^ begin on January 1, 1879, to redeem the greenbacks 
in gold. At that time there were $380,000,000 in greenbacks in 
the country used as money ; and the question at once came up : 
What will keep people from presenting these notes to the treasury 
in such large quantities that all the gold there will be drawn out ? 
The reply was that when the people know that a paper dollar is 
as good as a gold dollar, they will not wish to have the gold, since 
it is more convenient to carry the paper money in the purse. The 
saying of a Frenchman who had a deposit in a savings bank was 
now often told to illustrate the situation. He was told that there 
was a run on his bank and started for the bank to withdraw his 
deposit. When he asked for his money, he was surprised at the 
readiness with which it was handed to him. Looking at it for 
a moment he burst out : "If I can't get my money, then I want it ; 
but if I can get it, then I don't want it!" The people, it was 
said, would not demand gold if they knew they could get it. 



THE GROWTH OF THE NATION AFTER THE WAR 417 

As the year 1878 drew near its close the price of gold dropped. 
December 17 it sold for par for the first time since 1861. Janu- 
ary 1, 1879, the resumption act went into force without the slight- 
est difficulty. The gold brokers and speculators now went into 
other business, and from that day to this there has never been a 
time when the greenbacks were not worth face value in gold. 

QUESTIONS 

I. Describe the disbandment of the federal armies. What was the 
effect of the homestead law? What opportunity did it offer to the dis- 
banded soldiers ? What caused the prices of ^ain to remain high ? Why 
were the manufacturers prosperous? What was the effect on wages? 
on other branches of business? 

II. Describe the development of the Northwest. Show how immigra- 
tion progressed from 1865 to 1875. Where did the immigrants settle? 

III. What was the general iinancial condition of the South? How 
was emancipation one of the causes ? Why were the Southerners not able 
to borrow money to restore their farms ? What had become of Southern 
capital? What became of the confederate money? Show how labor 
was disorganized. To what fanciful expectation was this partly due? 
Describe the cropping system. Describe the rise of a new class of Southern 
farmers. Why did the plantation system not favor towns? In what 
respect did the conditions of trade change after the war? Show how the 
result favored the development of towns. 

IV. Describe railroad building in the newer parts of the country. 
What was the expectation of the builders ? How did they get the money ? 
Why did the price of wheat continually drop after 1871 ? What was 
the effect on our farmers? How did the farming situation react on the 
railroads? What was the story of Jay Cooke and Company's failure? 
What was the consequence ? What is the general cause of panics ? Show 
how progress was made even in hard times. 

V. What kind of tariff was maintained after the war ? Why ? What 
was the argument for it? the argument against it? What sections 
favored each side ? How did the parties take sides ? Describe the three 
tariff bills of the seventies. 

VT. What was the value of greenbacks as compared with gold? How 
was the value of a promissory note or an account a matter of doubt? 
Explain the fluctuation in the price of gold. What would remedy all 



418 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

these troubles? Explain the resumption act of 1875. Why could a 
comparatively small sum of gold serve to redeem a large sum of notes? 
How was resumption at last effected? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Homestead Law ; The Final Review of the Union Armies ; Finan- 
cial Condition of the South, 1865-1875 ; Jay Cooke and Company ; "Black 
Friday" ; The Resumption of Specie Payment. 



1 



CHAPTER XXXI 



THE SETTLEMENT OF THE FAR WEST 



First settlers 



Most of our Western country was settled by waves of popula- 
tion, each of which rolled a little farther than the preceding wave. 
For example, people from Indiana moved on into Illi- 
nois, people from Illinois into Wisconsin and Minne- 
sota and Iowa, and people from Iowa into Nebraska. That was 
not the way the Rocky Mountain states got their first white set- 
tlers. The first people who settled there were miners, who had 
gone first to California, and from that country drifted backward 
into the Rocky Mountains, seeking the places in which nature had 
concealed gold and silver. 

While these metals were found in many places, the most valuable 



i 




;^^J*^*'^f^ 








The Site of San Francisco in 1847 
From an original drawing. 



deposits were in Nevada, Colorado, and Montana. In 1859 some 

419 



420 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

miners discovered a rich deposit of gold ore on the side of Mount 
Davidson, 6000 feet above sea level. The place was nearly 300 
Nevada miles northeast of San Francisco, but it soon swarmed 

settled Yvith a busy mining population. The ore paid well 

for a while and then began to fail. Here as in all cases in this 
region the first miners were untrained adventurers, who knew 
little about the science of minerals. While they washed the 
Mount Davidson gravel for gold dust they encountered a heavy 
dark metal which clogged their pans and which many a miner 
threw down the side of the mountain impatiently. When the mines 
began to show signs of failing, the unskilled miners went off to 
other fields. After them came men who knew the qualities of 
minerals. They examined the heavy metal that had been so 
liberally discarded and found it to be rich silver ore. The silver 
mines of Mount Davidson proved far richer than the gold mines. 
Around them grew up a town to which the name of Virginia City 
was given. Settlers came in large numbers, and in a short time 
there were many mining villages in the vicinity. 

How to govern these people was a difficult problem. The re- 
gion was so far from Salt Lake City, the capital of Utah, that 
Becomes a officers acting under Utah authority could do little, 
state ii^ 1851 [I ^ag decided to create a new territory with the 

name of Nevada, and in 1864 this territory was admitted into the 
union as a full-fledged state. It was thought that other mines 
would be opened and that Nevada would become a prosperous 
state. But it contained very little farming land, and for many 
years its development was slow. In recent times irrigation has 
been applied to its dry plains and parts of it have been converted 
into fertile agricultural districts. Still there are vast stretches 
of dry plains which, it seems, will not be made fertile by irri- 
gation. 

Gold was discovered in 1858 at Idaho Springs, seven hundred 
and fifty miles east of Virginia City. The announcement brought 
a great many miners to the spot, and several deposits were dis- 



THE SETTLEMENT OF THE FAR WEST 



421 



Colorado 



covered in the neighborhood, especially at Boulder, Denver, and 
Leadville. Here, also, it was seen that some kind of govern- 
ment was necessary, and in 1861 the region was erected 
into a territory with the name of Colorado. In 1876 
the territory became a state. At Leadville silver was found in con- 
nection with lead, and the lead proved more valuable than the gold. 
A third rich gold field was discovered in 1861 six hundred miles 
northwest of Denver. It proved very rich in the precious metal. 
From one spot, known as the Alder Gulch, the miners 
took $25,000,000 worth. In the midst of this rich 
group of mines grew up the town of Helena. To give the region 
a proper government it was made the territory of Montana in 
1864. Mines do not demand a large number of people to work 
them and for many years both Colorado and Montana attracted 
few farmers. It was not until 1889 that Montana became a state. 
In our own time irrigation has been introduced into many parts 



Montana 




Mining with Pan and Long Tom 

of the Far West, and wherever it has been employed the soil 
has proved very fertile. 



422 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



The first miners in California found the gold in the sands at 
the bottom of the streams. It had been washed down from the 
The miner's neighboring hills through many years and was found 
pan as dust or small nuggets. The miner would place some 

of this earth in a pan, fill the pan with water, and shaking it back 
and forth till the earth had been washed off the top, he would 
find the heavy gold dust at the bottom. When a miner had 
worked in a place until it no longer yielded gold, he moved on 
to another place where he thought he could find it. By the 
law a miner could stake out a claim, as much as he could dig over, 
and he owned it unless he abandoned it. 

The pan proved a heavy and slow instrument in the hands of 
the miner, and he soon invented the cradle, a shallow box on 
rockers. Into it the earth was placed and water poured 
on. While the miner sat by it and rocked the cradle the 
water washed the earth over the sides. A still greater improve- 
ment was the long tom. It was a long cradle, with cleats 
nailed to the bottom. With the gold gravel on the inside it 
was set so that one end was higher than the other. A stream of 




Hydraulic Mining 

water was led by a pipe into the upper end, and the miners 
rocked the long tom as the water flowed down over the contents 



THE SETTLEMENT OF THE FAR WEST 



423 



and gradually washed out tKe earth, the gold being caught be- 
hind the cleats. 

In this kind of mining there was great waste, and when better 
methods came to be adopted, the discarded dirt of the early miners 
was washed over again and much gold was found. The Mining 
better methods came with the advent of mining com- companies 
panics. They generally bought up the claims of the miners and 
consolidated them into large mines. Machinery was now installed, 
and water was carried many miles in pipes. Instead of digging 
the earth with a pick, heavy engines sent powerful streams of 
water against sides of mountains and hills and made them crumble. 
After a while crushing machinery was employed to reduce to 
powder the hardest rock that might contain gold, and the precious 
metal was extracted by chemical processes. The individual miner 
never could have done this. His work was to explore the valleys, 
and find the places in which the gold was hidden. He usually got 
only a small part of the gold. 

The miners were the pioneers, showing what the country was 
like and opening the way for a larger number of settlers. Wyoming 
and Idaho ,were seen to -___ 

be capable of supporting 
grazing and Farming 
agri culture , ^^^ grazing 
and settlers gradually 
came in to take up these 
forms of business. New 
Mexico and Arizona 
were also entered first 
by miners and then by 
farmers and ranchers. 

From 1860 to 1880 was '^^^ ^"''* McCormxk Reaper 

a period of great expansion in this general region. 

The settlement of Utah was not due to the efforts of the miners. 
It was a refuge for the Mormons, whose peculiar religious views 




424 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



had aroused the hostihty of those who knew them in the older 
states. They practiced polygamy, and their central church was 
a powerful moneyed corporation. They disliked the 
people around them, and in 1847 they settled on the 
shore of the Great Salt Lake, in what was then called the Great 
American Desert. By hard work they built houses, irrigated the 



Utah 




Modern Machinery in the Corn Belt 

dry soil, and established a thriving settlement. When the Cali- 
fornia gold seekers came across the plains after 1848, the Mormons 
sold them wheat and cattle at good prices and continued to pros- 
per. The settlements were erected into a territory in 1850, but 
congress would not admit Utah as a state until the Mormons gave 
up polygamy. For this reason Utah had to wait until 1896 to 
escape from the territorial condition. 

Meanwhile, important changes occurred on the Pacific coast. 
California was not entirely given over to the production of gold. 
Agriculture ^^ ^^^ ^ ^^^^ farming region, and its delightful climate 
on the made it especially suited for the growth of fruits. 

Pacific coast Oranges, olives, grapes, and many other fruits which 
ordinarily grow in the tropics are here found in a latitude as far 
north as North Carolina, on the Atlantic coast. Oregon and 



THE SETTLEMENT OF THE FAR WEST 425 

Washington contained fine supplies of lumber, and the soil was 
adapted to the production of wheat and other grains. Wash- 
ington Territory was created in 1853, but for a long time the 
country did not progress as rapidly as its resources warranted. 
But in 1883 it completed its first great railroad, the Northern 
Pacific, and in 1889 it became a state. The development of 
Alaska has also been of great benefit to Washington. 

This progress could not have been achieved without the aid 
of railroads. Gold and silver once mined could be carried to 
market on pack horses over the most difficult trails. Relation to 
But grain, fruits, and cattle must be carried to market railroads 
on railroads. The growth of the Far West was closely bound up 
with the construction of the railroads across the continent, and 
with their many branches. 

The first railroad across the Rocky Mountains was the Union 
Pacific, completed as far as Ogden, Utah, in 1869. Here it met 
the Central Pacific, which had been constructed from The first 
California eastward. The federal government gave Pacific rail- 
land liberally to each of these roads. It was located ^°^^^ 
along the tracks, and the roads borrowed money on the land as 
security, expecting that the opening of the country would make 
the land valuable. To each road the government also lent bonds, 
at the rate of $16,000 a mile for the parts that ran through level 
country, $32,000 a mile for the parts running through hilly coun- 
try, and $48,000 for each mile constructed through the moun- 
tains. Experience proved that this was an extravagant grant. 
The Union Pacific started at Omaha, Nebraska, and ran west- 
ward in nearly a straight line. Many branch lines have been 
constructed from this first great line. 

Other railroads were soon being built to the Pacific coast. 
The Northern Pacific was begun in 1870 and passed through the 
states south of the boundary line between the United Qjj^gj.,Q^jg 
States and British America. The panic of 1873 forced 
its builders to stop work for a while, but later it was carried to 



426 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

the point of destination, in Oregon. Another important road was 
the Great Northern built several years after the Northern 
Pacific, and running from Duluth, on Lake Superior, to Puget 
Sound. A fourth was the Southern Pacific, whose main line 
passes through Texas and enters California through Arizona. 
Finally, we must mention what is generally called the Santa Fe 
system, which starts for the coast from St. Louis, going by way of 
Kansas, New Mexico, and Arizona. Each of these great lines has 
played a wonderful part in the development of the country through 
which it runs. 

The appearance of the miners, and after that the construction 
of the railroads, showed the Indians that their day was nearly 
Destruction past. In the first place, it meant the destruction of the 
of the game game on which the Indian relied for food. Passengers 
on the first trains across the plains of Kansas could see herds of 
buffalo from the car windows, and it was reported that these 
animals had been known to stop the trains by getting on the tracks. 
In a few years the hunters had made an end of this situation. 
Sometimes they killed for sport, shooting for the mere pleasure 
of hitting the animal shot at. The greatest damage was done by 
men who slew for the sake of the hides, killing as many as they 
could stalk, and taking the skins onl3^ This wanton waste of 
his food supply made the Indian very indignant. 

The railroads were signs that the white man had come to stay, 
and the Indians began to show hostilities. Many a gang of track- 
layers had to stop work to fight off the attacks of the savages. 
As the roads continued to creep onward the Indians became more 
troublesome. The government did not wish war and tried to 
prevent it by making treaties. But the treaties were broken, 
as often through the faults of the whites as through those of the 
red men ; and the result was a series of wars. From 1864 to 
1867 there was continual fighting on the great western plains, 
with the Cheyennes, the Arapahoes, the Comanches, the Apaches, 
and the Sioux. The government sent soldiers who took terrible 



THE SETTLEMENT OF THE FAR WEST ' 427 

vengeance when they could. It was the theory of the soldiers 
that peace could not be established until the Indians were thor- 
oughly crushed. 

The way in which the war was fought finally aroused the horror 
of the country. It seemed that we were waging a war to destroy. 
So many protests were made that congress appointed The Indians 
an Indian commission to visit the Indian country and crushed 
see if some reasonable way could not be found for securing a per- 
manent peace. The tribes were tired of the war, and one after 
another made treaties. This happened in 1867 and 1868, but in 
1868 the war was renewed. General Sheridan, now in command 
of the army in the Northwest, gave orders for severe punishment, 
and his commands were carried out rigorously. One of his offi- 
cers was General Custer, who surrounded a sleeping village of 
Chej^ennes and killed and captured nearly three hundred men, 
women, and children. Another officer. Colonel Baker, surprised 
an encampment of Piegans against whom no wrongdoing was al- 
leged, and killed thirty-three men, ninety women, and fifty children. 
Hard blows like these broke the spirit of the Indians, and the war 
came to an .end soon after 1870. 

The next outbreak was the Sioux war of 1876. The Black Hills 
were the hunting range of the Sioux, confirmed to them by a 
solemn treaty. In 1874 General Custer led a band of war with 
explorers thither and discovered that the hills were rich ^^ Sioux 
in gold. The report brought forth a crowd of miners and adven- 
turers. According to the treaty they had no business on lands 
set aside for the Indians. They were warned off by the govern- 
ment, but continued to stay in the country. The older Sioux were 
displeased, but did not go to war. However, there was a large 
party of younger Sioux who were not willing to put up with a 
violation of their treaty. They found a very able leader in Sitting 
Bull, who went on the warpath. 

General Sheridan now sent three armies into the Sioux country. 
They carried everything before them, and many burning villages 



428 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

showed where they marched. An accident gave one striking vic- 
tory to the Sioux. Custer was sent with six hundred men to dis- 
Death of perse what seemed a small force of Indians. In reality 
Custer this force was very large and was commanded by Sitting 

Bull himself. The Indian commander was about to retreat, but 
when he saw how small was the American column, he offered battle. 
He concealed some of his warriors in ravines at the foot of a hill 
and placed the rest on its crest. Custer was completely deceived. 
He sent part of his men to attack on the flank, and charged with the 
rest, two hundred and sixty in all, straight up the hill. As he passed 
its foot the warriors surrounded his column, and not one of the 
white men escaped. They all died fighting. Custer was a popu- 
lar soldier, and his death was greatly lamented. But the war 
went on, and Sitting Bull lost so many men that he could no 
longer make a stand. He and his followers fled to British America, 
where they suffered many hardships. In 1879 he was allowed to 
return to the United States, where he lived quietly for several 
years. In 1890 he was ordered under arrest because it was feared 
that he was plotting to begin another war. He resisted the officers 
and was killed. He was a remarkable Indian, and his losing strug- 
gle to save his people from destruction has won him sympathy in 
all parts of the world. 

During all these troubles the five civilized tribes had lived 
quietly in Indian Territory. They were gradually absorbing 
Civilizing the ideas of civilization. The government would have 
the Indians been glad to have all the tribes in a similar condition ; 
but the Indians of the Northwest would not go to Indian Terri- 
tory. They loved the free life of the reservations, where they could 
hunt and;iive as they pleased. As treaty after treaty was made 
with them, the government promised them ever increasing amounts 
of supplies. Schools were established for their children, in the 
hope that education would make them less hostile. Much good 
has been done in this way ; but the Indian is wedded to the ways 
of his fathers and acquires civilization very slowly. 



430 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

The government desires that all the Indians become citizens 
as rapidly as they show that they will be good citizens. Laws 
Acquiring have been passed by which they are assigned land of 
citizenship their own when the president of the United States 
thinks they are ready to become landowners. The Indians in 
the country do not increase rapidly in numbers. There are now 
about 300,000 in the country, and 122,000 of these still live on 
reservations in the old tribal way. When Oklahoma became a 
state, in 1907, the five civilized tribes of Indian Territory were 
incorporated in its population. They gave up their tribal coun- 
cils and their distinct governments and became parts of the gov- 
ernment of the state. Some of them have become prominent in 
politics. 

QUESTIONS 

I. How did the settlement of the Rocky Mountain states differ from 
the settlement of the older Western states? Who were the first settlers? 
In what three areas were the richest deposits of gold and silver? De- 
scribe the early mining operations on the slopes of Mount Davidson. What 
two classes of miners usually appeared? How was silver ore discovered 
in Nevada? Show how Nevada became a state. What was the nature 
of its development? 

II. Describe the early days in Colorado. What minerals were most 
important in this region ? Describe the discovery of gold in the Montana 
region. How did Colorado and Montana become territories and states? 
What has been the effect of irrigation in the Rocky Mountain states? 

III. Explain the method of mining with a pan. What was a mining 
claim? How was it taken up? Explain mining with a cradle. What 
was the long torn? How was it worked? Show why these methods 
were wasteful. How did mining by large companies come into existence ? 
Describe the methods of mining by the companies. Why could the early 
miner never do this? What was his service in the development of gold 
and silver mining ? 

IV. In what parts of the Rocky Mountain states did grazing and 
farming first appear? Describe the settlement of Utah. Why was the 
territory long denied statehood? Describe the introduction of fruit 
culture in California. What forms of agriculture were developed in 
the states north of California? Explain the relation of this kind of 



THE SETTLEMENT OF THE FAR WEST 431 

development to railroad construction. Which was the first transcontinen- 
tal line of railroads? Describe the construction. What aid did it get 
from the federal government? What other great roads were constructed 
to the Pacific coast? 

V. Why did the Indians become alarmed at the appearance of the 
railroads? Describe the destruction of the game. How did the Indian 
feel about it? How did he try to stop railroad building? How did the 
government try to prevent trouble ? Show how the efforts failed. What 
was the attitude of the army toward the Indians? Show how the feeling 
of the East was awakened. Describe the work of the Indian commission. 
How was the war waged under the direction of General Sheridan ? What 
was the result? 

VI. Describe the outbreak of the war with the Sioux. What was the 
Indian side of the contention ? How was the party favoring war led on ? 
Describe the last battle of Custer. What was the later history of Sitting 
Bull? 

VII. How have the tribes received civilization? What has been the 
result with the reservation Indians? What steps are taken to convert 
them into landowners? What laws have been made in reference to the 
acquisition of land by Indians? What is the Indian's tendency in popu- 
lation? What is the present status of the five civilized tribes? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The History of the Comstock Lode ; Life of the Gold Miners ; The 
Mining Laws ; Destruction of the Game ; Career of Sitting Bull ; Last 
Fight of Custer; Construction of the Union Pacific Railroad. 



CHAPTER XXXII 



THE POLITICAL HISTORY FROM 1877 TO 1897 



We have now come to the history of the two great pohtical 
parties within recent times. We must see how the leaders of 
The aim of each tried to win the elections, and in what way they 
the parties governed the country when they had been successful at 
the polls. We shall not understand this history unless we keep in 
mind that each side was working, as it saw best, for the good of 

the country. A fair-minded 
student will see the good in 
the party opposed to his 
own. 

President Hayes was inau- 
gurated in 1877 and held office 
Hayes and f^^' ^o^r years. He 
the spoils was a man of excel- 
system j^j^^ character and 

had made a good governor of 
Ohio. But he was not popular 
with the political leaders in his 
own party. He wished to put 
civil service reform into oper- 
ation, but congress would not 
vote money to support the ex- 
aminations. He did what he 
could, however, without the aid of congress, and he was able to 
introduce a system of examinations for the appointment of clerks 
in the customhouse and postoffice in New York City. Carl Schurz, 
a member of his cabinet, acting on his own responsibility, adopted 

432 




Rutherford E. Hayes 



THE POLITICAL HISTORY FROM 1877 TO 1897 433 




Carl Schurz 



the same system in making appointments in his department, 
and Hayes supported him in it. In these and other ways he 
managed to check the spoils 
system sHghtly. 

Hayes also withdrew the 
troops from the South. The 
soldiers in this region Hayes and 
had come to be em- ^^^ South 
ployed to enable the republi- 
cans to bring out the negro 
vote. Hayes thought that the 
Southern states should be al- 
lowed to regulate their own 
elections. If wrong was done, 
it was the people of those states 
and not the federal government 
who should right it. He be- 
lieved that in due time the South would do as well as it could 
by the negro, and most of the people of the North agreed with 
him. As a result of the withdrawal of the troops, the republicans 
lost control of the last Southern state in which they had power. 

Some of the republicans considered Hayes's course a bad one 
and declared he was not true to his party. Many who had been 

liberal republicans in 1872 were now his supporters, ^ , ^. 

1 TT 1 c 1 1 • • Two factions 

and Hayes took one of them, Carl Schurz, mto his cabi- 
net. His open leaning to these men led his opponents to call 
his followers the half breeds, while they themselves were known 
as stalwarts because they stood for the stricter kind of party 
loyalty. To the end of Hayes's term there was much wrangling 
between the half breeds and the stalwarts, both claiming to be 
the only true republicans. 

When the time for the election of 1880 approached, strong 
efforts were made to unite the two sides. The stalwarts were 
mostly for nominating General Grant again, but they were not 
2f 



434 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



able to control the nominating convention. After some division 
Grant's opponents finally nominated James A. Garfield, of Ohio. 
The stalwarts were displeased at first, but after a while they 

smothered their anger and 
supported the man whom the 
The election party had taken for 
of 1880 its candidate. The 

democrats nominated General 
W. S. Hancock, a brave officer 
in the civil war. He was not 
experienced in political affairs, 
and the people showed by their 
votes that they preferred his 
opponent, who had long been 
a prominent man in Washing- 
ton. Garfield was elected by a 
safe majority. 

His administration was a 
short one. July 2, 1881, he 
was shot by a half-crazy man, 
who had been refused an office in the civil service. The wounded 
president lingered two months and a half, and died on Sep- 
tember 19. During his illness the newspapers published daily 
bulletins from his sick room, and all the people were drawn 
closely to him as they watched his brave fight against death. He 
was succeeded by Chester A. Arthur, of New York, who had 
been elected vice-president in 1880. Two important things 
happened while Arthur was president, 1881 to 1885. 

First, Congress at last gave way, 1883, and passed an act for 
civil service reform. It provided for examinations for applicants 
The civil fo^ government positions. The names of those who 
service law passed the examinations were to be placed on a list, and 
^ when it was necessary to make an appointment, one 

of the three highest on the list was to be taken. When a man was 
once appointed, he could hold office as long as he was capable of 




James A. Garfield 



I 



THE POLITICAL HISTORY FROM 1877 TO 1897 435 

doing the work. By this means we have gradually secured a 
faithful body of government clerks who do not live in fear of dis- 
missal with every change of administration. The death of Gar- 
field at the hands of a disappointed officeseeker showed the evil 
of the old system and had much to do with inducing congress to 
pass the civil service law. 

The second important matter was the passage of a new tariff 
law. The years 1879 to 1882 were prosperous years. Wheat, 
cotton, and most other articles that we exported brought The sur- 
good prices, and the country bought large quantities of pl"s 
foreign merchandise. The duties received on these articles as 
they came through the customhouses raised the federal revenue 
to a large sum. It was soon evident that we were getting much 
more money than was needed for government expenses. The 
surplus was used in paying the debt, but it became so large that 
many people began to think it would be better to lower the rates 
of duties and thus leave some of the surplus money in the pockets 
of the taxpayers. 

This opinion was taken up by the democrats, who have gener- 
ally favored lower tariffs, and in 1882 they carried the elections 
for the house of representatives. It was understood The tariff 
that they would pass a bill to reduce the rates as soon as of ^883 
the new congress came into power. The friends of protection were 
alarmed and concluded that it would be better to reduce the tariff 
themselves, since they could do it in such a way that it would 
injure the protected manufactures least. Thus it happened that 
the tariff of 1883 was passed in the last days of the republican 
congress. It lowered the rates slightly, and it satisfied the popu- 
lar demand for tariff reduction. When the new democratic con- 
gress came into power, late in 1883, it was not able to pass a law 
for further reductions. 

In 1884 the parties were again arrayed in a contest to elect a 
president. The republicans nominated James G. Blaine, of Maine, 
a brilliant orator. He had been speaker of the house of represent- 



436 



THE PLAIN STORY OP AMERICAN HISTORY 



atives for several years and had a great many devoted friends. 
But he had made some very strong enemies, who would not vote 
The candi- for him under any conditions. He made many telling 
dates, 1884 speeches in the canvass. The democrats nominated 
Grover Cleveland, of New York, well known as a fearless re- 
former. He had been elected governor of the state in 1882 by 
a very large majority, and during the two years of his office he 
had shown a fearless determination to do his duty. It was be- 
lieved that he could carry the state of New York, in itself a most 
important thing. 

There were at this time a large number of independent voters. 
Many of them were men who had been liberal republicans in 1872, 

and many more were young 
men who believed in tariff re- 
Eiection form. The independ- 
resuits ents did not like 

Blaine, and they turned all 
their strength to Cleveland. 
They had much influence in 
the important states, where a 
few voters could decide how 
the state voted. They were 
especially influential in New 
York, which went for Cleveland 
and thus insured his election 
by a small majority of the 
electoral vote. It was the first 
democratic victory since 1856. 
Gloomy prophecies had been 
made for the country if it 
Cleveland should have a demo- 
as president cratic president. To 
the surprise of these prophets affairs went on under Cleveland in 
much the same way as under Arthur. The United States is so great 




Grover Cleveland 



THE POLITICAL HISTORY FROM 1877 TO 1897 437 

a country that a change from one party to another is not a serious 
thing. The new president showed that he was a man of good sense. 
He tried to enforce the civil service reform law, although it was 
very hard to refuse the demands that many who had worked for 
his election now made. The republicans had filled the offices with 
their friends, and the democrats did not like a law which left 
these men safe in their places. Cleveland enforced the law as 
well as he could ; but sometimes he could not refuse the demands 
that came from his own friends. The reformers were disappointed 
because he appointed some of his political supporters to high office ; 
his own party became dissatisfied because he did not appoint more 
of them. Thus he was blamed on each side ; but he kept on as he 
began and the more reasonable part of the people realized that he 
was doing his best. 

Cleveland wished congress to pass a law for a lower tariff. He 
thought the bill passed in 1883 did not go far enough. He urged 
the democrats to pass a bill through the house of repre- Cleveland 
sentatives, but the party would not do as he wished, and the 
and the country began to say the talk of the democrats **^'^ 
about tariff reform was merely to get votes. The president was 
aroused at this, and in December, 1887, sent a long message to 
congress urging tariff reform. The outspoken- appeal showed 
he was in earnest, and his party saw they must either support 
him or repudiate their own leader. The latter they could not 
afford to do, and so they suppressed their feelings against Cleve- 
land and took a stand for a lower tariff. 

The presidential election of 1888 was now at hand. The demo- 
crats nominated Cleveland for a second term and declared that 
the tariff was the leading question. The republicans The election 
were pleased to have the tariff for an issue ; for they °^ '888 
believed the people did not wish to lower the duties. To do so 
would cause suffering to the manufacturers, who would have to 
reduce wages. That would mean that a large part of the people 
would have less money to spend, and so the prices of farm products 



438 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



would go down. A lack of money with any large class of people 
is bound to cause trouble to many others. So well did the repub- 
licans present their side in the campaign that Cleveland was defeated, 
and Benjamin Harrison, the republican candidate, was elected presi- 
dent. The fact that the inde- 
pendents did not vote so strongly 
for Cleveland as in 1884 had 
much to do with his defeat. 

President Harrison, a citizen 
of Indiana, was the grandson of 
William Henry Harrison, whom 
the whigs elected president in 
1840. He was a man of the 
best character, but he was cold 
President in disposition and 
Harrison not popular. The 
democrats declared that he got 
his chief glory from his grand- 
father, and the humorous papers 
represented him as a small 
man wearing an immense hat, 
bearing the words, "Grand- 
father's Hat." This form of 
caricature was repeated so often that it became the common de- 
scription of President Harrison. But it did not do him justice. 
While Harrison was president, 1889 to 1893, the repubhcans 
controlled both houses of congress and could make what laws 
they wished. There was now a large surplus in the 
treasury and they had to decide what to do with it. 
Since the surplus was the difference between the amount the gov- 
ernment collected and the amount it spent, it was easy to see that 
it would disappear entirely if the government would only spend 
more freely. This kind of argument was made in good faith, and 
congress undertook to carry it into practice. One thing it did 




Benjamin Harrison 



A new navy 



THE POLITICAL HISTORY FROM 1877 TO 1897 439 

will ever make its work remembered : it passed liberal appro- 
priations to build a new navy. Up to that time little had been 
done since the civil war to make our navy worthy of the country. 
The feeling was general that a navy would bring on trouble with 
other nations, and that if we would merely strive to develop our 
own country, we need not fear attacks on the sea. In this way the 
years passed quietly, and our small navy attracted little notice 
among the navies of the world. Meanwhile, iron was being used 
in the construction of warships, and the type of vessel was grow- 
ing in size. The men who felt that our nation should keep up 
with the times felt that we should build a new navy on the most 
modern plans. They had their way in 1890 ; and the ships then 
ordered played an important part in the war with Spain eight 
years afterwards. 

Another measure was the law passed to pay service pensions 
to civil war soldiers. From the beginning our government has 
given pensions to its disabled soldiers, the intention Service 
being that no man who suffered loss of limb or health pensions 
fighting for his country should be allowed to come to want. After 
the civil war liberal pensions were given to disabled soldiers. 
But the new law, 1890, provided for a pension to every man who 
had served, whether he was disabled or not, if he was willing to 
be classed as a dependent. The result was a large increase in 
the amount paid for this purpose. In 1889 the government spent 
$89,000,000 for pensions. In 1893 the amount was $159,000,000, 
and it has remained about the latter sum ever since. 

Other liberal expenditures were made. The money appro- 
priated by congress was more than a billion dollars for the two 
years that this congress existed ; and for that reason the phrase 
was coined, "a billion dollar congress." It was used as a term 
of reproach by the democrats. 

Another important measure of congress at this time was the 
McKinley tariff law, passed in 1890. It took its name The McKin- 
from William McKinley, Jr., of Ohio, the chief author ley tariff 



440 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

of the law. It was the purpose of the makers to have a law 
which would give the manufacturers ample protection. It raised 
the rates on most articles, and the impression went a.broad that 
it was the highest tariff we had ever laid. The law was not 
passed until a few weeks before the day on which the country 
was to elect another house of representatives. At that time the 
people were very much aroused, and the result was a house largely 
democratic. The billion dollar congress and the McKinley tariff 
gave the republicans a sharp setback ; and the democrats began 
to believe that they might elect the president in 1892. 

They had much difficulty to make up their minds as to their 
candidate. It was evident to a great many members of the party 
Election of that Cleveland was the most distinguished democrat ; 
1892 but the friends of the spoils system were against him. 

In New York the leaders of Tammany Hall, a very powerful politi- 
cal society, were against him, and several leading members of the 
United States senate used their influence to prevent his nomina- 
tion. But he was the man the voters in his party wanted for their 
leader, and after a while his opponents saw they could not defeat 
his nomination. They gave way, and Cleveland became the 
democratic candidate. The republicans renominated Harrison. 
He had made a good president, and they wished to show their con- 
fidence in him. A warm campaign followed, and the result was the 
election of Cleveland. He is the only president we have had who 
has held a second term which did not follow immediately on his 
first term. 

Those who voted for Cleveland knew that he wished to undo 
the McKinley law and to reduce the tariff to a lower basis. He 
Wilson- was no sooner president than he began to make plans 
Gorman to carry out this purpose. Both houses of congress were 
* democratic, and a bill known as the Wilson tariff bill 

was quickly passed by the house of representatives. It was a low- 
tariff bill and sought to collect only the amount of money that 
was necessary to pay the expenses of the government. In the 



THE POLITICAL HISTORY FROM 1877 TO 1897 441 

senate this bill was opposed by the republicans and a small group 
of democratic senators, who were able to change it greatly. The 
leader of these men was Senator Gorman, of Maryland. When 
the bill finally passed, it had so little tariff reform in it that Cleve- 
land thought his party was disgraced. But he did not veto it, 
for it provided for lower rates than those of the McKinley act. 
The new law was called the Wilson-Gormaa act, and it was passed 
in 1893. 

Soon Cleveland had overwhelming trouble of another nature. 
For several years a movement had been going on to force the gov- 
ernment to coin and accept as money all the silver that Free coin- 
was offered in bullion form. Prices of wheat and cotton age of silver 
had been unusually low, and many people thought it was because 
there was not enough money in the country. The West and the 
South wished to have the silver coined, since it would increase the 
amount of money in circulation. The East was opposed to the 
demand. It held that the increase of the money supply by means 
of silver dollars, which were becoming less valuable as silver bullion 
daily became cheaper, would disturb business and force gold coins 
out of the channels of trade. The question was very hard for the 
people* to understand. To them it seemed that silver was good 
money and the more of it the better. 

The advocates of- free silver were most numerous in the rural 
states and its opponents were strongest in the cities. Gradually 
the contest settled down to a battle between the East, in East and 
which city life dominated, and the West and South, in West 
which rural life was common. The republicans, long the friends 
of the manufacturers and bankers, became the opponents of the 
cause of free silver, and the democrats of the West and South 
became its friends. But there were many democrats in the East, 
Cleveland among them, who did not think that the government 
should coin free of charge all the silver bullion that was offered it. 

Cleveland's second term was hardly begun when a great deal of 
anxiety was shown lest the government should lose all the gold 



442 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

in the treasury. Europe was continually calling for gold from 
every part of the world, and she was offering high prices for it. 
Demand for American speculators would take to the American treasury 
gold United States notes, that is, greenbacks and other notes 

of the government, which the treasury must redeem in specie. 
Soon there was very little gold left in the hands of the government. 
Then Cleveland ordered the treasury to borrow gold by selling 
bonds in the markets. But the demand for gold kept up and it 
was necessary to borrow more gold. In all, the government got 
by this means over $250,000,000 in gold before the European de- 
mand was checked. 

When the speculators demanded gold of the treasury, they always 
got it. The friends of silver were very indignant and declared 
Cleveland's tiiat the treasury ought to redeem its notes in silver as 
democratic well as gold. They denounced Cleveland, saying he was 
*°®^ the friend of the speculators. In their anger they even 

went so far as to say that he was bribed by the speculators. The 
charge was not true, but it could not have been made by democrats 
if there had not been a bitter fight within their party. During the 
last two years of Cleveland's second term he was more disliked by 
the majority of the Western and Southern democrats than by the 
republicans themselves. 

When the two parties came to select candidates for the cam- 
paign of 1896, the division among the democrats showed itself 
Nomination plainly. Those who lived in the West and South de- 
of Bryan clared they would never again support a man from the 
East. They demanded a true friend of free silver, a man who 
would not be friendly to Wall Street. They were in the majority, 
and as soon as the nominating convention met they showed that 
they meant to control it. The men of the East were thrust aside, 
and William Jennings Bryan, of Nebraska, was nominated for the 
presidency. He was unpopular in the East, but the democrats 
of the West and South were his warm admirers. He was a good 
orator, and his campaign speeches were heard by great multi- 



THE POLITICAL HISTORY FROM 1877 TO 1897 443 



tudes. From 1896 to 1912 Bryan was the most influential demo- 
crat. 

The republicans profited by the division in the democratic 
party. It was certain that many democrats would not vote for 
Bryan nor indorse his views. 
Since the democrats were openly 
for the free coinage Result of 
of silver, the repub- *« election 
licans felt that they could afford 
to come out openly against it. 
Up to this time they had usually 
tried to please the free-silver 
men by saying they were 
friendly to silver. In 1896 they 
threw this mask aside and de- 
clared openly for gold as a 
money metal. William McKin- 
ley, Jr., of Ohio, author of the 
McKinley tariff act, was nom- 
inated for the presidency. He 
carried every state north of the 
Potomac and Ohio rivers and 
east of the Mississippi. He 
also carried Kentucky, West 
Virginia, Minnesota, Iowa, California, and Oregon. He had two 
hundred and seventy-one electoral votes to Bryan's one hundred 
and seventy-six. 

QUESTIONS 

I. Why should we be able to see the point of view of each political 
party? What kind of man was Hayes? From whom did he encounter 
opposition? What was his attitude toward the spoils system? How did 
he begin to establish civil service reform? 

II. What was his Southern policy? How were the troops used in the 
South? What was Hayes's view about the Southern elections? What 




William McKinley 



444 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

was the result of the withdrawal of the troops? What two factions now 
appeared in the republican party ? How did they get their names ? For 
what did each stand ? Describe the parts taken by each in the nomination 
of the party's candidate for president in 1880. Whom did the democrats 
nominate? What was the result of the election? 

III. Describe the short presidency of Garfield. Who succeeded him? 
What are the chief features of the civil service law of 1883 ? How did 
Garfield's death influence the passage of the law? 

IV. How did the surplus in the treasury come into existence? For 
what purpose was it used? What suggestion was made? Which party 
took up the cause of a lower tariff? What was the result of the congres- 
sional elections of 1882? What course did the republicans now take? 
What kind of tariff was made in 1883? What happened to the efforts of 
the democrats to make further reductions ? 

V. Whom did the republicans nominate in 1884? What was his 
strength and weakness? Whom did the democrats nominate? What 
was his record? Who were the independent voters? What was the 
result of the election? 

VI. Why were some of the people disappointed in the beginning of 
Cleveland's administration? What was his attitude toward civil service 
reform ? What two classes were displeased ? What was his position on 
tariff reform? How did his party stand on this question? What was 
the effect of his message of 1887? 

VII. Who was the democratic candidate in the election of 1888? 
On what platform? Why did this please the republicans? Whom did 
they nominate? What was the result of the election? What kind of 
president was Harrison? 

VIII. What new suggestion was now made for the reduction of the 
surplus ? What was the condition of the American navy before Harrison ? 
What policy was now adopted? On what ground were pensions paid 
before 1890? What new principle was introduced? What difference did 
it make in the expenditures? What kind of tariff was passed in 1890? 
Why did the elections come at an unfortunate time for the republicans ? 
What was the result? 

IX. How did Cleveland come to be nominated in 1892? Whom did 
the republicans nominate ? What was the result of the election ? 

X. Describe the enactment of the Wilson-Gorman tariff. What did 
Cleveland think of it ? Why was free coinage of silver demanded ? What 
was the argument against it ? How did the sections take sides on the silver 
question? Describe the withdrawal of gold from the treasury. How 
did Cleveland meet it ? Why did he arouse the dislike of the silver men ? 



THE POLITICAL HISTORY FROM 1877 TO 1897 445 

XI. How did the division among the democrats show itself in the 
convention of 1896? What did the silver men demand? Who was 
nominated ? What kind of race did he make ? How did the republicans 
profit by the democratic quarrel? What did the party say in regard to 
money? What had hitherto been the position of the party on silver? 
What did it now do ? Describe the result of the election. 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Spoils System at Work ; President Garfield ; The Presidential Can- 
vass of 1884 ; The Growth of the American Navy ; The Pension System. 



CHAPTER XXXIII 

A NEW ATTITUDE TOWARD FOREIGN NATIONS 

In the early days of our government it was generally held that 
we ought not to concern ourselves with the affaii's of other nations. 
, . . At that time the theory was a good one. We were not 

Isolation 11, 1 

strong enough to make other powers respect us, and we 

ought not to run the risk of attempting something that might 

lead to war. By 1885 many Americans had come to believe that 

we had outgrown this early stage of isolation. We were quite 

strong enough to take any part we chose in the affairs of the 

world, and they felt that we should be more respected by other 

powers if we cast aside our self-restraint. 

This feeling was made stronger by the growing conviction that 
we must take an important part in the affairs of the people who 
lived on the islands in the Pacific and in the countries that border 
that ocean. Through the Monroe doctrine we had pledged 
ourselves to have nothing to do with the quarrels of Europe, but 
we had demanded that European powers should not meddle with 
the affairs of any nation in the western hemisphere. If we keep 
Europe away, it is our duty to see that the smaller American states 
do not wrong the European nations. It is for these reasons that 
we have been forced to play a stronger part in foreign affairs during 
the last twenty-five years. 

The first indication that we were adopting a new policy came 
out in what was known as the Samoan incident. The Samoan 
Samoan Islands are situated in the southern Pacific Ocean 4700 
Islands miles from San Francisco. They have no importance 

commercially, but are valuable as a coaling station for ships that 

446 



i 



A NEW ATTITUDE TOWARD FOREIGN NATIONS 447 

ply in the southern seas. They are on the route from CaHfornia to 
Austraha. As early as 1854 the Germans appeared in the islands, 
trading and establishing rich business firms. Soon afterwards 
American and British traders also appeared, and between them 
sprang up much rivalry. The native king of the island feared 
that Germany would get so strong a foothold that she would 
never be put out, and offered to place the islands in our hands. 
But we refused to take them, because we did not wish to have to 
defend territory so far away. The king was so much opposed to 
the Germans that they used their influence to overthrow his power. 
A rival claimant to the throne appeared, and he was welcomed by 
the Germans as the rightful king. The Americans and the British 
supported the old ruler. 

A warm quarrel now arose, and in 1886 three German warships 
arrived at Apia, the chief town of the islands. The Germans 
in the islands were stronger than either the English or Athreaten- 
the Americans, and they showed that they meant to put i°g situation 
their candidate on the throne. They gave him arms and ammuni- 
tion, and allowed the Samoans to see that he had their powerful 
support. On one occasion they sent a ship to bombard a native 
' seaport that was in rebellion against him. An American gunboat 
was in the harbor. Her commander, Captain Leary, weighed an- 
chor and followed the German boat, taking position so that the 
fire from the German guns would have to fall on the American boat. 
This was Leary's way of showing that the United States would take 
part in the war. The commander of the German boat would not 
fire on the American flag and went quietly back to Apia. 

This incident showed that the Samoan affair might lead to war 
with Germany, and the government at Washington was convinced 
that it ought to be settled at once. Nobody wished to The work of 
go to war over so small a thing as the Samoan Islands, * hurricane 
but nobody wished the government to sacrifice its honor before 
the demands of any other power. For over a year the diplomatists 
tried to solve the question and made no headway. Early in March, 



448 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

1889, three German, one British, and three American warships 
were in Apia harbor, Samoa. Each nation strongly desired peace, 
but it was feared that a rash blow in this distant spot would 
precipitate an armed conflict. March 16 a great hurricane 
descended on the harbor, blowing fiercely into the open roadway. 
All the warships but one, the British ship Calliope, were driven 
on the beach and destroyed. The Calliope only escaped by steam- 
ing out to sea when the storm was at its worst. This great calamity 
cooled the passions of the men engaged in the quarrel, and the three 
governments concerned came to an agreement in regard to Samoa. 
For a time the three powers exercised joint control over the island ; 
but this arrangement proved unsatisfactory, and in 1900 the 
islands were divided between Germany and the United States. 
We got Tutuila, with the excellent harbor of Pago-Pago, and Ger- 
many took the rest. Great Britain gave up all her claims to the 
country. The Samoan incident, as it is called, occurred between 
1886 and 1898. 

In 1891 came the I lata incident, which for a few weeks made a 
war with Chile seem certain. There was a revolution in this 
Chile and important South American country, and Balmeceda, a 
Baimeceda usurper, had made himself dictator and was carrying 
on the government in his own interest. The people rose against 
him and gradually took the power out of his hands. Our minister 
in Chile was Patrick Eagan, who showed much partiality for the 
usurper; and on this account the United States was disliked by 
the revolutionists. One of their warships was the Itata. She was 
sent to San Diego to get military supplies for the fleet and army. 
American officers took possession of the ship while she was in the 
harbor and detained her. Her captain was very indignant, and 
believing that he was unlawfully held, overpowered the American 
officer who had been stationed on his ship, and sailed for Chile. 

The American people now became angry. The Chileans had 
used force against one of our officers doing his official duty, and 
it was demanded that the Itata should be captured. The Ameri- 



A NEW ATTITUDE TOWARD FOREIGN NATIONS 449 

can cruiser Charleston was sent after the Itata with orders to 
seize her and bring her back to American waters. When the 
Chilean revolutionists heard of this, they sent a powerful chasing the 
Chilean ship to protect the Itata. For several days it Itata 
looked as if there would be a battle between the two vessels. 
Both arrived at Acapulco, a Mexican harbor at which it was be- 
lieved the Itata would stop. They were ready for action, and 
if the expected ship had appeared, she would undoubtedly have been 
taken by the Charleston, whereupon the other Chilean ship would 
have opened fire. Fortunately, the Itata did not stop at Acapulco, 
but went straight to Chile. A short time was enough to show the 
revolutionists the folly of having a war with the United States, 
and when we demanded that the Itata be given up, the demand was 
granted. An investigation by an American court showed that the 
vessel should not have been detained and she was handed over 
to Chile. 

By this time there were several American warships on the coast 
of Chile, and they kept in close touch with all that happened. 
In August, 1891, the revolutionists prepared a strong Triumph 
expedition to land on the coast and surprise Santiago, of the 
Balmeceda's capital, by a quick march overland. The revolution 
American vessels observed the landing and then went to Valparaiso 
to cable the news to Washington. In strict fairness they should 
not have informed Balmeceda of what was going on ; but somehow 
the news got out and was published in the Santiago newspapers as 
coming from the United States ships. The revolutionists lost the 
advantage of giving their opponents a surprise, but they won the 
victory, overthrew Balmeceda, and took over the government of 
Chile. 

Out of these two events grew a great deal of hostile feeling in 
Chile for our country. October 16, 1892, the Ameri- -j-j^g sam. 
can cruiser Baltimore was at Valparaiso, with Captain more at 
Schley in command. He allowed some of his crew to Valparaiso 
go ashore, where they became involved in a riot with the natives. 
2g 



450 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

Two Americans were killed and nineteen were wounded. It was 
said by the sailors that the police of the city, instead of protecting 
the Americans, joined in the attack on them. The Chileans 
denied the charge and the investigations that were held did not 
make it clear which statement was correct. News of the affair 
caused great indignation in America. This feeling grew when it 
was known that the Chilean government was not disposed to 
adjust the matter. After about two months' delay they took 
notice of it by asking for the recall of Eagan. Now Eagan had 
been a partial minister, and many Americans felt that he was not 
free from faults. But we were not willing to recall him at the 
mere dictation of Chile. We accordingly replied that when Chile 
apologized for the attack on the sailors of the Baltimore and was 
willing to adjust the matter, we would recall Eagan. This brought 
the Chileans to look calmly at the matter, and six months later 
they handed over $75,000 to be distributed among the families 
of the victims of the riot in Valparaiso. Eagan was not recalled, 
but being a republican appointee he went out of office with the 
advent of the democrats under Cleveland, 1893. 

The Chilean quarrel was hardly over before another Pacific 
Ocean question was up for decision. It involved the annexation 
Hawaiian to the United States of the Hawaiian Islands. These 
Islands islands lie between San Francisco and Hong Kong and 

are so important as a place of call for steamers that they have be- 
come known as "the crossroads of the Pacific." The first Ameri- 
can influence there was established by a group of able missionaries 
about 1820. The natives accepted the teachings of the mission 
workers and adopted the ways of civilization very rapidly. There 
was a line of kings who granted one reform after another at the 
suggestion of the missionaries. The soil was adapted to the 
growth of sugar, and foreigners came into the country, some as 
planters and others as merchants. The most numerous group was 
the Americans, among whom were many sons and relatives of the 
niissionaries, By 1890 a large part of the wealth and business of 



A NEW ATTITUDE TOWARD FOREIGN NATIONS 451 

the islands was in the hands of these foreigners, and the natives 
were gradually becoming a race of laborers. 

This situation aroused the fear of the queen, Liliuokalani, 
lest her country should fall entirely under the control of the whites. 
Her method of checking the danger was tyrannical. Hawaiian 
In 1887 the king had established a constitution in which revolution 
the whites were allowed to vote and in which an elected parliament 
was to make laws for the country. In 1893 the queen announced 
that she would replace the existing constitution with one of her 
own making. The whites became alarmed and took up arms. 
The American minister ordered the American ship of war in the 
harbor of Honolulu to land marines to protect American property. 
When the natives saw the American force in their streets, they would 
not come out at the call of the queen ; and so she had to yield to 
superior force. Then the whites proclaimed a republic, and the 
queen renounced her throne. 

The men at the head of the republic were American born, and 
they took steps to have Hawaii annexed to the United States. 
This step displeased the British and other foreigners not American 
Americans, and they made plans to overthrow the new ^^g raised 
government. They thought that their interests would be in- 
jured if the islands passed under American control. The American 
minister was now alarmed lest the islands should fall into the 
hands of some other nation. In his anxiety he raised the American 
flag in Honolulu and declared that Hawaii was under the 
protection of the government of the United States. He did not 
dream that anybody at home would be opposed to receiving this 
important group of islands. Harrison was then in the last weeks 
of his presidency. When he knew what was done in the Pacific, 
he prepared a treaty of annexation with the approval of the 
Hawaiian agents and sent it to the senate for ratification. 

When Cleveland became president, the senators had not voted 
on the treaty, and he asked them to send it back to him. The re- 
quest was complied with, and Cleveland began to make an inves- 



452 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

ligation of the whole matter. He suspected that the revolution 
of the islands was due to the aid given by the American marines, 
Annexation and it did not seem fair in his mind that a great nation 
deferred should use her power to overawe the Hawaiian people 
and make their country American territory. He sent an agent to 
Honolulu who, after talking with many persons, reported that the 
revolution was accomplished through our aid. Cleveland, there- 
fore, refused to go farther with the task of annexation. He could 
not restore the deposed queen to her throne, and Hawaii remained 
a republic for five years. In 1898, after we had obtained a foot- 
hold in the Philippines, we felt that the possession of the islands 
was a necessity, and annexation was carried through congress with 
but slight opposition. Hawaii is now a territory and may some 
day become a state. 

Another question that has attracted much attention is the at- 
titude of the federal government toward the importation of Chinese 
Chinese and Japanese laborers. The question aroused much in- 
laborers terest on our Pacific coast, where these laborers have 
been most numerous. In the early years of our possession of Cali- 
fornia there were very few American laborers in the state. Mining 
was so profitable that most people preferred to follow it as a calling ; 
and the people of the state were glad to get Chinese for the labor of 
the farms and the towns. They were used in railroad building, in 
domestic service, and in digging excavations. After a while they 
were coming in so rapidly that the white laborers began to be 
alarmed. The Chinaman can live more cheaply than the white 
man because he is used to doing it in China ; and the labor unions 
complained that he was keeping wages down. The employers 
were satisfied to keep him as a laborer ; but in 1882 congress passed 
an act to exclude Chinese laborers for ten years. This act was 
extended another ten years in 1892, and in 1902 it was made per- 
manent. 

In 1882 there were few Japanese in America, and nothing was 
said about them in the law against the immigration of Chinese 



A NEW ATTITUDE TOWARD FOREIGN NATIONS 453 

laboi^ers. But their nation was rapidly coming to the front in 
Asia. In 1895 it finished a war in which the great Chinese em- 
pire was defeated ; and in 1904 it carried on a remarka- Japanese 
ble struggle against Russia. At first the success of Ja- laborers 
pan was observed with much pleasure by the people of the United 
States. As a people we are apt to be in sympathy with a plucky 
nation that is rising in power and fighting for her own existence. 
Soon after the war the number of Japanese in the states increased 
rapidly, and they became an important part of the laboring popula- 
tion of the Pacific coast. The workmen of California now be- 
came alarmed and began to agitate against the admission of these 
cheap laborers. In 1906 San Francisco ordered that the Japanese 
children should be taught in an "oriental school." The order gave 
great offense to Japan, who prided herself on being a civilized 
nation. She held that she was treated as an inferior state and that 
we had violated our treaty with Japan. She demanded that the 
federal government force the Californians to treat Japanese school 
children as they treated the children of any other foreigners. The 
government at Washington asked the San Francisco authorities 
to repeal their order. For a long time the request was refused ; but 
finally an agreement was made by which Japan promised to keep 
her laborers from coming to America and San Francisco decided to 
admit to the ordinary schools Japanese children under sixteen 
years of age. 

In 1913 the Japanese question came up again in California. 
The citizens of Japan were buying land in the fruit-growing section 
of the state. The farmers became alarmed lest a foreign xhe japa- 
race should be planted permanently in their midst, and nese and 
a law was made to prevent aliens from acquiring land '^"** owning 
under these conditions. The law brought out a protest from the 
Japanese government, but it did not result in serious ill feeling 
between the two nations. At present the matter is still being 
discussed by the Japanese and American governments. 

Another serious matter which will long be lemembered in the 



454 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

history of our diplomacy was what is known as the Venezuelan 
TheVene- incident, 1895, a matter which came up during the 
zueia second term of President Cleveland. Venezuela lies 

boundary chiefly in the valley of the Orinoco River, and east of it 
is British Guiana. At that time the boundaries between the two 
countries had not been determined. Venezuela had several times 
asked Great Britain to appoint a commission to settle the matter, 
but the requests had not been granted. The disputed area con- 
tained 50,000 square miles. English settlers gradually moved 
into it, and gold was discovered there about 1875. Great Britain 
was now less inclined than ever to adjust the controversy and 
announced that she would be content with nothing less than all the 
disputed area. Venezuela asked several times that the matter be 
arbitrated, but Great Britain would not agree to the suggestion. 

Venezuela then asked the United States to aid her. We replied 
favorably and tried to bring the two powers together for a friendly 
Cleveland's settlement of the dispute. Our advance, though sev- 
demand eral times renewed, was always rejected by Great Brit- 
ain, who said there was nothing to arbitrate. Finally President 
Cleveland became convinced that it was our duty as a nation to 
take a strong stand in behalf of Venezuela. The Monroe doctrine 
declared that no European nation should establish colonies at the 
expense of any of the states south of us or exercise control over those 
states. If Britain had no right to the territory she claimed, then 
she was exercising control against the spirit of the Monroe doctrine. 
This is what Cleveland thought and in 1895 he made a clear de- 
mand on Great Britain that she should submit the Venezuelan 
boundary claim to arbitration. When this was refused, he asked 
congress to appoint a commission of fair-minded and competent 
men who should look into the evidence and decide what was the 
true boundary. It seems that he meant to force Great Britain to 
accept the boundary after it was laid down by the commission ap- 
pointed by congress. Of course, this would have meant war. 

For a moment after Cleveland laid his request for a commission 



A NEW ATTITUDE TOWARD FOREIGN NATIONS 455 

before congress the British took it as a joke. It had been so long 
since the Monroe doctrine had been put to any real use that the 
British ministry could hardly believe that it would again be urged 
by an American president. But a few days was enough to con- 
vince them that Cleveland was grimly in earnest. A few weeks 
more showed the British people that they had not acted generously 
by Venezuela. All that country asked, and all that Cleveland de- 
manded, was that the great British Empire should appoint fair- 
minded men to see what the boundary really ought to be. It was 
to the great credit of Great Britain that she soon came to see how 
reasonable was this request. In a little more than two months after 
the matter came to its exploding point it subsided quietly through 
the appointment by Great Britain of a committee of arbitration. 
This was all that we asked. After a full investigation the committee 
decided the boundary dispute Largely in favor of Great Britain. 

The Venezuela incident showed that the United States are not 
willing to give up the Monroe doctrine. In fact, since 1895, 
they have several times put it into use to regulate the significance 
affairs of some of the states south of us. In 1895 the of the in- 
British people thought that the Venezuelan incident "dent 
was but a bit of Yankee brag. But from that time the attitude 
of Great Britain towards our government has been more friendly 
than before. It seems that the vigorous action of Cleveland was 
appreciated by a nation which has always respected a plain-spoken 
man. 

QUESTIONS 

I. Why was it wise for the United States to refrain from interfering in 
the affairs of other nations ? In what respect did public opinion begin 
to change about 1885? Why have we had to adopt a stronger policy in 
recent years? In what parts of the world has this policy been applied? 

II. Why were the Samoan Islands important? What three nations 
had interests in them ? Why did we refuse to take them ? How did the 
German party seem to be trying to gain control ? How did Captain Leary 
nearly precipitate war? Describe the great storm at Apia. What was 



456 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

the effect on the quarrel? What agreement was now made? How was 
it afterwards modified ? 

III. Describe the situation in Chile, 1891. Why did the revolutionary 
party dislike the United States? How did the Itatn affair arise? What 
was the effect on American opinion? Describe the chase of the I tain. 
How was the incident settled? Describe the triumph of the revolution- 
ists. How were the American ships charged with giving out information 
unfairly ? Describe the attack on American sailors at Valparaiso. What 
course did Chile take? What was the American reply? How was the 
affair adjusted ? 

IV. Why is the possession of the Hawaiian Islands important to the 
United States? What was the influence of the missionaries? How did 
the islands grow in civilization? What was the cause of the revolution 
of 1893 ? What part did the American minister take ? How did the 
plan of the foreigners in Hawaii alarm the American minister? What 
did he do to meet it ? What course did President Harrison adopt ? Why 
did President Cleveland hesitate to annex the islands? What was the 
result of his investigations? How did we finally get possession of 
Hawaii ? What is the present status of Hawaii ? 

V. In what part of the country was most interest felt in the exclusion 
of Chinese laborers? Why were these laborers considered undesirable? 
What was the early history of Chinese laborers in California? Why did 
the labor unions object to them? What act on the subject was passed 
in 1882? Why did the act of 1882 say nothing about the Japanese? 
How did we come to be suspicious of them? What order was issued in 
San Francisco? Why did the Japanese object? What compromise 
was made ? What dispute arose in regard to the ownership of land by the 
Japanese ? What was done about it ? 

VI. How did the Venezuelan boundary dispute originate? How did 
the United States come to interfere? How was the Monroe doctrine 
involved? How did Cleveland announce his position? What was his 
position ? How did the British take it ? How did they proceed to settle 
the matter ? To which side was most of the disputed territory allotted ? 
What did the affair signify ? How did it affect our relations with Great 
Britain ? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

Description of Samoa ; Balmeeeda's Usurpation ; Early History of 
Hawaii ; Present Condition of the Islands ; Our Relations with China in the 
Boxer War ; The Treaty of Portsmouth ; Cleveland's Venezuela Message. 



CHAPTER XXXIV 
THE WARS WITH SPAIN AND THE FILIPINOS 

Our war with Spain was fought to free Cuba. It was not a 
selfish war. We had stood by many years while a large nation 
mistreated a small one, we had protested in vain against our service 
the mistreatment, and at last we removed the large *° ^"^^ 
nation to such a distance that she could no longer interfere with 
the small one. When that was done, we put the small nation on 
her feet and left her to govern herself. We made no other restric- 
tion than to warn Cuba that she must not make a bad use of the 
independence we had given her. Rarely has a nation fought an 
expensive war with so small a desire to serve its own interests. 

The island of Cuba was a valuable Spanish colony from the 
days of Columbus to 1898. It was devoted to the production of 
sugar and tobacco, which sold well in all parts of the Two classes 
world. The wealthy planters and the large merchants in Cuba 
and bankers were chiefly Spaniards ; the laborers and the small 
landowners as well as many of the poorer men of the towns were 
native Cubans. Between the two classes there was little sympathy. 
The Spaniards looked down on the Cubans and did not think them 
capable of any part in the government. In fact, these poor people 
had been so long oppressed by the superior classes that they had 
but little education and were filled with so much hatred for their 
oppressors that they were not in a state of mind to govern a 
country wisely and justly. But they were very patriotic and never 
ceased to dream of the time when there should be a Cuba Libre, 
a Free Cuba. 

In 1868 the Cuban natives began a war against Spain. They 
were not able to meet in the open field the large army that was 

457 



458 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

sent to crush them, but they adopted a kind of warfare that was 
equally effective. They divided into small, well-drilled bands and 
The ten took refuge in the hills and swamps. Sallying out, they 
years' war q^i off any weak Spanish force that was sent out of the 
fortified towns; and when they were pursued, retreated to some 
new place of defense. When they needed supplies, they raided 
the plantations of the wealthy planters. They let it be known that 
they would spare a plantation if the owner would give them a sum 
of money. It soon came to the pass that no planter could grind his 
sugar if he did not buy safety from the leaders of the revolution. 
To the Spaniards in the island this seemed a barbarous kind of 
warfare. Although they had many times as many soldiers as the 
revolutionists, they showed no ability to run down the armed 
bands. In this way the war went on ten years, until both sides 
were exhausted. 

The United States were deeply interested in the war and tried 
to make peace. In 1877 the president of the revolutionists was 
Reforms captured, and General Campos, the Spanish governor, 
promised announced that Cuba would be made a self-governing 
colony if the revolt was ended. He promised that the island 
should have representation in the Spanish parliament, that there 
should be a Cuban lawmaking body for the members of which 
the Cubans generally should be allowed to vote, and that Cubans 
should be allowed to hold ofhce in the island. This was not inde- 
pendence, but if it were enforced, it meant that the conditions in 
Cuba would be a great deal better than ever before. The revolu- 
tionists accepted the offer, trusting Campos and Spain to do all that 
had been promised. The United States were not a party to the 
agreement, but they approved it and used their influence to get 
the insurgents to accept it. They were very anxious that it should 
be carried into effect in good faith. 

Year after year now passed without the fulfillment of the Spanish 
promises. It is true that a decree was issued for elections in Cuba, 
but the great majority of persons whom it made voters were those 



THE WARS WITH SPAIN AND THE FILIPINOS 459 



who favored Spain. The mass of the former revolutionists were 
not to vote. In February, 1895, Spain ordered the estabhshment 
of a lawmaking assembly in Cuba ; but it was not the 
kind that had been promised in 1878. Half of its mem- 
bers were to be appointed by the king of Spain and the other half 
were to be elected under the one-sided system in force in Cuba. 



Broken faith 



GULF fe"'^ ,™ 

_ „ Puntfl^oraa* 1 « ^ 

a i .«." *S=5'='- lY'GREAT ATI 

M E X I C O ''•■^>p £ 'c^ABACO 1. 

,,«* -A* .a^'^ 'jti S •. t'SALVAOOR .OR 

;xuMA 1. Xa, a 

iNES^^ '-•"aST; -^ ^-^ GRAND CAICOS'^^ 




THE WEST INDIES IN 1898 

The natives were greatly disappointed at this failure of tfie prom- 
ises of Campos and at once reopened the war. 

The old methods were now employed. The planters could not 
grind their cane without permission of the revolutionists, whose 
bands hovered around the towns waiting for an oppor- Reconcen- 
tunity to cut off some straggling body of Spanish troops, tration 
Although an army of 200,000 men was sent against them, they were 
not suppressed. At last the Spanish commander in Cuba ordered 
the country people to leave their farms and come within the forti- 
fied towns. By allowing the farms to remain untilled, he thought 



460 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



there would be nothing to support the revolutionists, and they 
must soon be starved into surrender. The result of this policy 
was a vast amount of suffering by the poor persons who were thus 
crowded into the towns. It was all useless ; for the war went on 
as before. Gathering the peaceful people into the towns was called 
" reconcentration." 

The Cubans continually called on the United States for help. 
President Cleveland, who was in office in 1895, when the struggle 




began, was opposed to their requests. But the people were very 
much in sj-mpathy with the sufferers, and Cleveland had trouble 
to restrain them from extending such assistance to the Cubans 
that Spain could complain that we were violating neutral- 
ity. President McKinley, who was inaugurated in 1897, also 
wished to avoid taking up Cuba's quarrel, but he was less decided 
about it than Cleveland. Congress was steadily coming to the 
point of declaring war to aid the revolutionists. Late in 1897 it was 
plain that if Spain did not end the war soon, the people of the 
United States would demand that their government intervene in 
the struggle. 

In Havana there was a strong Spanish party, and they became 



THE WARS WITH SPAIN AND THE FILIPINOS 461 

incensed at the friendship felt by our people for the revolution. 
They showed it so clearly that President McKinley ordered the 
Maine, one of our best battleships, to go to Havana har- The Maine 
bor. It was thought that she would cause the inhab- destroyed 
itants of the city to show more respect to Americans than they 
had been showing. February 15 she was destroyed by an explosion 
as she lay at her anchorage in the harbor. There came first a 
sharp report and then a great uproar while a vast column of smoke 
and fire rushed upward in the night. The hull of the ship was 
wrenched open and she sank within twenty minutes. Two of 
her officers and 258 of her men were killed. It has been thought 
that a mine went off under the ship, and that this caused her 
magazines to explode and tear a hole in the hull. Who set off the 
mine is still an unanswered question. 

The destruction of the Maine increased the desire of our people 
for war. So high ran feeling that when it was announced that 
Spain had agreed to suspend hostilities and take steps to establish 
a genuinely liberal government in Cuba, nobody was willing to 
trust a promise wrung with so much difficulty from a nation who in 
the past had so often broken her word. The American feeling 
was so strong that McKinley gave way, and congress declared war 
on April 19, 1898, the anniversary of the battle of Lexington. 

What right had we to interfere in the quarrel between Spain 
and her colony? We placed our right on two grounds: 1. Hu- 
manity. Spain's policy in the island was making Cuba why we 
a place unfit for habitation. She was driving peo- intervened 
pie away from their homes and reducing them to the verge of 
starvation. 2. Our own interests were closely bound up with 
Cuba's welfare. If her trade was cut off, we suffered, and during 
any war she might wage against her mother country she was sure 
to fit out hostile expeditions on our shores. We did not want 
to suffer injury to our commerce nor to use a large part of our navy 
to keep Cubans from violating our neutrality. We had urged 
that Spain end the war or yield what was demanded by Cuba. 



462 THE PLAIN STORY OP AMERICAN HISTORY 

Having failed in our demands, we now proposed to put an end to the 
war ourselves. In declai'ing war we announced that we did not 
fight to acquire territory, and we promised that if we won the war, 
Cuba should have her independence. The newspapers of Europe 
and South America treated this declaration with derision ; but the 
time came when they realized that it was made in good faith. 
The actual fighting of the war is divided into two sea battles 

and two land campaigns. The first 
.^"l^iliii^s,. of the sea battles was at Manila. 

When war was declared. Commodore 
Battle at George Dewey was at 
Manila Hong Kong commanding 

a squadron composed of four pro- 
tected cruisers, two gunboats, and a 
revenue cutter. His flagship was the 
Ohjm'pia, one of the cruisers. He 
received orders to go to Manila and 
destroy or capture the Spanish squad- 
ron known to be there. He lost 
Admiral George Dewey ^^^^ ^ momcut in delay. He entered 

Manila harbor before dawn on May 1, and when day broke, he 
was ranged before the Spanish ships which, for protection, had 
drawn up in line under the guns of the shore batteries. Dewey 
opened a well-aimed fire at once. After an hour the Spanish ships 
were badly crippled, the American fire was suspended and the 
sailors were given breakfast. That done, the battle was resumed, 
and by 12.30 p.m. the enemy ran up a white flag and surrendered 
their fleet and the fortifications of Cavite. They lost ten warships 
and a transport, and 381 men were killed, besides a large number 
wounded. Their fleet was inferior to ours, but the aid of the bat- 
teries on shore is supposed to have made up the difference. The 
Americans lost one man killed and seven wounded, and none of 
our ships was injured. The marksmanship of the Americans was 
exceedingly good and that of the Spaniards was bad. Dewey 




THE WARS WITH SPAIN AND THE FILIPINOS 463 

remained in front of Manila after the battle awaiting instructions 
from his government. 

Spain was caught unprepared in the Philippines, and her ships 
there were the poorest she had. In her navy were a few first-class 
modern cruisers, and these she wished to use against the Cervera's 
commerce of the United States. When war was de- squadron 
clared, a squadron consisting of four armored cruisers and three 
torpedo-boat destroyers was at the Cape Verde Islands and im- 
mediately set out for the West Indies. It was commanded by 
Admiral Cervera (pronounced Thairvaira). The American navy 




Dewey's Flagship, Olympia 



was at once put into motion to find and crush them. It was sup- 
posed they would first go to some Cuban port, and taking on coal 
there, would go north to seize merchant vessels or to bombard the 
cities of the Atlantic coast. Our best ships were sent to Key West, 
where they were divided into two squadrons. One, under Commo- 
dore Schley, was known as the flying squadron, because it con- 
tained fast ships which were able to move rapidly. It was sent 
around the western end of Cuba to cruise along the southern shore 
and see if the Spanish ships reached port in that part of the island. 
The other squadron contained heavier ships and proceeded more 



464 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

slowly along the Northern shore. It was under command of 
Rear Admiral Sampson, who was in superior command to Schley. 

Admiral Cervera reached the French island of Martinique on 
May 11, and got valuable information about the location of the 
Cervera at American squadrons. After some delay he ran for Cuba 
Santiago and reached Santiago, at the eastern end of the island, 
on May 19. Wireless telegraphy was not known in 1898, and 
Schley, who was on the southern coast of Cuba at the time, knew 
nothing of Cervera's movements. He thought the Spanish fleet 
was in the concealed harbor of Cienfuegos, and although he had 
an order from Sampson to go straight to Santiago he delayed for 
several days until he learned that he was mistaken in supposing 
that the fleet was at Cienfuegos. He then went to Santiago, 
where he established the blockade of the Spaniards. The several 
days of his delay gave Cervera an opportunity to get out to sea, 
if he had been active enough to use it. Schley was soon joined 
by Sampson, who came by way of the northern coast, and the 
Spanish fleet was effectively bottled up. 

Sampson found out that only a small body of Spanish troops 
was in Santiago, and he urged the president to send an army to 
A land take the place by land. The capture of Santiago would 

expedition mean that Cervera's fleet would have to go out and be 
destroyed by the superior American fleet, or that they would be 
taken with the city. To prevent their escape Sampson sent Lieu- 
tenant Hobson with a collier into the narrow portion of the harbor's 
channel with orders to sink the ship and escape if possible in a 
launch. Hobson had a picked crew and started on his mission just 
before dawn. He arrived at the proper spot unperceived, and the 
vessel was duly sunk in the channel ; but she swung with the tide 
and settled in such a position that passage was not blocked. 
Hobson's action was none the less brave. He and his men had 
risked their lives in the coolest manner under the very guns of the 
castle that guarded the channel. Their launch was cut away and 
they clung to a raft until daylight when they were made prisoners. 



THE WARS WITH SPAIN AND THE FILIPINOS 465 

Admiral Cervera and other Spaniards paid high tribute to their 
heroism. 

The army which was to take Santiago was organized at Tampa, 
Florida. It was hastily assembled and suffered a great deal from 
the lack of proper supplies. June 14 it departed for xheSan- 
the front, escorted by the fleet. Most of the 16,887 tiago ex- 
men were regular troops, but there was a regiment of p®'^**^*"^ 
"Rough Riders," unmounted, which attracted much attention. 
Its lieutenant colonel was Theodore Roosevelt, who had resigned 
a high position in the navy department to go to the war. The 
regiment was composed of cowboys, prominent college athletes, 
and others whose training fitted them for endurance. The expedi- 
tion was off Santiago on June 20. 

The landing was made on the coast ten miles from Santiago at 
a point from which a road parallel with the shore runs to the town. 
Along this road the troops were sent as soon as they The de- 
were landed. A small Spanish force was encountered at fenses of 
the landing place, but it fell back toward Santiago, s^'^t^^so 
fighting two skirmishes with the Americans, who pushed on as rap- 
idly as they could. The main defenses of the town were on the 
crest of San Juan hill, across which the road ran about one mile 
from the town limits. Here the advance guard halted and joined 
the larger force which was to defend the town. 

July 1 everything was in readiness on the American side, and the 
troops were ordered forward. Part of them under General Lawton 
was sent off to the right to take El Caney, a small town 
which, Lawton said, could be taken in two hours. 
When it was taken, he was to swing his men around against the 
right side of San Juan hill, and until he could do this the rest of the 
army was to lie before San Juan hill, prepared to rise and charge 
when Lawton arrived. This would give the Americans the advan- 
tage of attacking a position from two sides at the same time and 
with a greatly superior force. But Lawton's plan did not go so 
smoothly as he expected. He learned that to carry blockhouses 
2h — 



466 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



defended by magazine rifles which use smokeless powder was a 
difficult thing. He did not carry El Caney until five o'clock in the 
afternoon. 

Meanwhile, the rest of the army reached a position at the foot 
of San Juan hill in full view of the enemy. Here they lay for two 
San Juan or three hours under very little cover while the Mauser 
hiu bullets sang over their heads. They were waiting for 

the signal that Lawton was at hand, a signal which could not be 
given for the reason that Lawton was still at El Caney, two miles 
away. About one o'clock the troops would stand it no longer and 



THE 
SANTIAGO 
CAMPAIGN 




CARIBBEAN 



SEA 



the advance began, without orders from the general. The men 
rushed forward in small groups, cutting the barbed wire that had 
been stretched across their way. They carried all before them 
and did not stop until they drove the Spaniards from their trenches 
at the top of the slope. The defenders of the hill fell back to a sec- 
ond line of trenches nearer the city. The Americans secured spades 
and intrenched themselves during the night. They were still over a 
mile from Santiago, and it seemed a hard task to carry the intrench- 
ments that confronted them. The generals began to despair, when 
the Spaniards gave them encouragement by an unexpected event. 



THE WARS WITH SPAIN AND THE FILIPINOS 467 

When the Spanish fleet arrived at Santiago, it fell under the 
superior command of the governor of Cuba, who wished to detain 
Cervera in the island. He thought his army would cervera 
rebel if the fleet sailed away, for they would say they ordered out 
were abandoned by Spain in a distant land. But in July the 
governor was alarmed lest the warships, the finest in the Spanish 
navy, should be captured with the town ; and he ordered Cervera 
to make a dash for the open sea. The admiral objected, saying 
that both the ships and the crews would be destroyed or captured. 
But the orders were strict, and he obeyed like a good soldier. On 
Sunday morning, July 3, he made the attempt. The American 
ships were waiting vigilantly off the harbor. 

When the first Spanish ship appeared coming out, the Ameri- 
can ships all made for her. She turned to the west and tried to 
escape along the shore, with the other ships following. The battle 
The Americans turned in the same direction and ran off Santiago 
in a line parallel to that taken by their opponents. The interval 
between them was close enough for the fire of the guns, and a 
terrific battle was kept up on both sides. Forty-five minutes from 
the time she first appeared the leading Spanish ship, the cruiser 
Theresa, turned her nose to the beach in a sinking condition. She 
was six and a half miles from the harbor. On her was Admiral 
Cervera, who was a brave man and took his position on the ship 
which led the forlorn hope. Five minutes after the Theresa sank 
the Oquendo turned to the beach and ran into the sand. Two 
torpedo-boat destroyers were sunk soon after they came out of the 
harbor. The third destroyer was not in the battle, for she had 
turned back before the fleet arrived in the West Indies. Two other 
Spanish ships are to be accounted for. They both passed beyond 
the first danger zone, but were hotly pursued by the Americans. 
One, the Vizcaya, reached a point twenty miles from Santiago 
before she too gave up the attempt to escape. The other, the 
Colon, a fast ship, held out until she was fifty miles from the harbor. 
Seeing at last that she could not escape, her officers opened her sea 



468 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

valves and allowed her to sink just after she surrendered. In this 
battle our fleet destroyed six fine ships, killed or wounded 474 of 
their crews, and took 1782 prisoners. Admiral Cervera was one 
of the captured. The prisoners were taken to the United States, 
where they were treated with such humanity that they expressed 
high esteem for their foes. 

The destruction of the fleet encouraged the Americans and 
depressed the spirits of the Spaniards in Santiago. The besieging 
Surrender lines were gradually extended around the town, and 
of Santiago on July 17 the place surrendered. The Americans 
agreed to send the Spanish troops to Spain, and they received con- 
trol of most of eastern Cuba. Much dislike was shown by the 
Spaniards for the United States before the war began ; but as soon 
as Santiago was surrendered the American and Spanish soldiers 
became very friendly. Thej' shared their food and could often 
be seen in friendly intercourse in the streets, until at last the 
transports arrived on which the conquered men were to return 
to their own country. 

It was now evident that Spain could not win the war, and it was 
good policy for her to make peace before other lives were uselessly 
sacrificed. This seemed so certain, that the United 
States hurried off an expedition which was about to be 
sent to capture Porto Rico. It had no serious opposition, and 
this rich island became ours })y conquest. It was considered desir- 
able to leave Spain no foothold in the West Indies. August 12, less 
than four months after the war began, the preliminaries of peace 
were signed and fighting ceased. The exact terms were to be ar- 
ranged by commissioners who were to meet in Paris October 1. 

When the commissioners met in Paris, they readily agreed that 
Cuba was to have her independence and that Porto Rico was to 
The treaty pass into the possession of the United States. We were 
of Paris also to have Guam, an island in the Ladrone group, 
which is valuable for a coaling station in the Pacific. The question 
of the Philippines caused more concern. Dewey remained in 



THE WARS WITH SPAIN AND THE FILIPINOS 469 



THE 
PHILIPPINES 



Manila harbor after he won his briUiant victory, and an army was 
hurried forward to support him. It landed on the shore of the 
bay, and the day after the preliminary treaty was signed the city 
of Manila was taken. Should we insist that the islands be ceded ? 
Spain could not well defend them, and we felt that if we gave up 
our foothold there, they would fall into the hands of some nation 
who might be hostile to our trade in the Orient. Besides this 
fact, the scene of Dewey's victory was a spot dear to American 
hearts, and the more the matter was 
debated the stronger became the 
opinion that we should have the 
islands. When President McKinley 
saw this, he instructed the com- 
missioners in Paris to secure the 
Philippines. The treaty when 
signed provided that we should pay 
$20,000,000 and take the islands. 

Taking the Philippines brought us 
a war with the Filipinos. They had 
come to our help in the 
attack on Manila, think- 
ing that we meant to drive out the 
Spaniards and leave the islands to 
the natives. They had an able leader 
named Aguinaldo, and when he saw 
that we intended to hold the island 

ourselves, he attacked our lines and roused the Filipinos to a 
general war. A large army was sent to Manila, and it began the 
slow task of conquering the natives. At the end of a year the 
islands were held by American soldiers distributed in about 
four hundred garrisons. But the people were as far from real sub- 
mission as ever. Shortly afterwards Aguinaldo was captured and 
after a year of further fighting the islands were pacified. 

The war with Spain and the acquisition of the Philippines were 



Filipino war 







470 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

the two most important things of President McKinley's adminis- 
tration. But there were two other matters that 

Two Iflws 

should be remembered. One was the passage in 1897 
of the Dingley tariff act, an act to revise the Wilson-Gorman tariff 
of Cleveland's second administration. It was not a low tariff. 
It was passed by those who favored protection, and the rates were 
nearly as high as those of the McKinley act of 1890. Another act 
was the law of 1900 to adopt the gold standard. It was now pro- 
vided that 25.8 grains of gold, nine-tenths fine, should be in our 
standard dollar. The secretary of the treasury was directed to pay 
it out on demand in exchange for all other forms of the money 
of the United States, paper or specie. In order that he might do so 
$150,000,000 of gold was set aside as a reserve fund out of which 
redemption might be made. From that time the question of the 
free and unlimited coinage of all the silver bullion that may be 
presented to the treasury for coinage has not been an important 
thing in our political life. The law of 1900 is still in force. 

QUESTIONS 

I. Describe our services to Cuba. What two classes lived in Cuba? 
What was the feeling of each for the other? Describe the ten years' 
war. What method of fighting did the Cubans employ? How did the 
war come to an end? What reforms were promised? What part had 
the United States in the compromise? Show how the promises were 
violated. 

II. How did the war begin again? What methods of fighting were 
employed? What was the result ? Describe reconcentration. What was 
Cleveland's attitude in regard to helping the Cubans ? How did McKinley 
look on the matter ? What was the attitude of congress ? Why was the 
Maine sent to Havana? What effect was expected? Describe the de- 
struction of the ship. What reforms were now promised by Spain ? Why 
did they not satisfy the American people? When was war declared? 

III. On what grounds did we interfere in Cuba? Describe each. 
What did we announce as our purpose in the war? Has the promise 
been kept? How was it regarded in Europe? 

IV. Describe the battle of Manila. To what advantage was the 



THE WARS WITH SPAIN AND THP] FILIPINOS 471 

victory largely due ? What did Dewey do after the battle ? Describe 
the departure of Cervera for the West Indies. Where was he expected to 
strike? What disposition was made of the American navy? Who were 
its commanders? Describe Cervera's voyage to Cuba. Describe Schley's 
voyage along the southern coast of Cuba. What other American squadron 
came up to Santiago ? What was now the situation of the Spanish fleet ? 

V. Why was it thought well to send an army to Santiago? Describe 
the army which was assembled to take Santiago. When did it arrive 
before the town? How did it approach? Describe Lawton's attack on 
El Caney. How did it aflfect the plan of battle ? Describe the attack on 
San Juan hill. Why did the soldiers now become discouraged? 

VI. Why was Cervera ordered to leave Santiago ? Why did he object ? 
Describe the naval battle. What was the effect of this battle on the land 
operations? What were the terms of surrender at Santiago? How did 
the troops of the two armies feel toward one another? Describe the 
campaign in Porto Rico. 

VII. What was provided in the preliminary peace agreement? What 
were the terms of the treatj^ of Paris of 1898? What was the situation in 
the Philippines? Why did we decide to retain them? Why did the 
Filipinos make war? What was the course of the war? 

Wbat two important acts of a civil nature were passed under McKinley ? 
Describe them. What does the law now provide in regard to coinage ? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Ten Years' War; The Destruction of the Maine; The Causes of 
the War with Spain ; The Battle of Manila ; The Battle of San Juan Hill ; 
The Exploit of Hobson ; The Health of the Army before Santiago ; The 
Career of Aguinaldo. 



CHAPTER XXXV 

THE POLITICAL LIFE SINCE THE SPANISH WAR 

President McKinley's way of conducting the war with Spain 
was approved by the people. The success of our army and navy 
Election of added to the general satisfaction, and he was reelected 
1900 in 1900 by a large vote. His democratic opponent was 

Bryan, who was still popular with his party. The democrats 
made a strong stand against the policy of acquiring colonies. 
They claimed that it would force us to maintain a great army and 
navy in order to defend the colonies and that it would bring us into 
conflict with other nations. Mr. Bryan urged all these points 
in his campaign; but the large majority for McKinley showed 
that the people approved what had been done. 

March 4, 1901, the president was inaugurated for the second 
time. During the summer he had many reasons to see that he 
Death of was loved by the entire people. His gentleness of 
McKinley spirit manifested itself in many ways. The South had 
sent troops to the recent war as readily as the North, and he 
showed his appreciation by appointing General Wheeler, an ex- 
confederate general, to a high position in the army. In a public 
speech he suggested that the nation could afford to pension dis- 
abled confederate soldiers. September 6 he was shot by an anar- 
chist while attending the exposition at Buffalo and died on 
the 14th of the same month. He was succeeded by Theodore 
Roosevelt, of New York, chosen vice-president in 1900. Roose- 
velt announced that he would carry out the policies of the dead 
president. 

One of these policies was to decide what should be our future 

472 



THE POLITICAL LIFE SINCE THE SPANISH WAR 473 



relation with Cuba. When the war began, congress announced 
that the United States would withdraw from Cuba when ^jj^ united 
Cuban independence was established. This announce- states and 
ment was received with doubt by Europe generally. ^^^^ 
It was said that if we got possession of Cuba, we would not give 
it up. 

Cuba was handed over to the United States at the beginning of 
1899. American garrisons were 
stationed in the important towns, 
and the Spanish troops left the 
island for Spain. At once we 
took up the task of restoring 
order and establishing a Cuban 
government. The war had de- 
stroyed business, and the farms 
were becoming unfit for cultiva- 
tion through neglect. Our offi- 
cers tried hard to restore both 
business and agriculture to their 
former conditions. The schools 
were reopened and placed on a 
better basis than ever before in 
Cuban history. Cuban tariffs 
were collected, as under Spanish 
rule, but the "money derived from 
them was spent on the island. 
In the days of Spanish power 

the revenues amounted to about $24,000,000, half of which went 
to pay the interest on Spain's debt and a fourth to support her 
army and navy. Only SI, 000,000 of this total revenue was spent 
on education and public works in the island. Under American 
rule the whole revenue was used in Cuba. 

One of the discoveries of science during this period proved very 
important. Dr. Charles Finlay, of Havana, and some American 




Theodore Roosevelt 



474 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

army surgeons, proved that yellow fever is transmitted only by 
Doctor ^ mosquito. By destroying these pests, and by care- 

Finiay's fully screening persons ill with this disease, it has been 
discovery possible to stamp out this plague in civilized commu- 
nities. There was not a city on the shores of the Gulf of Mexico 
which did not, before 1900, live in deadly terror of this fever. 

Our most important work was to help the Cubans set up an 
orderly government. There was much hatred between the upper 
Govern- ^^^ lower classesin the island, and it seemed certain that 
ment of the people would begin to quarrel as soon as the govern- 
^^^^ ment was given into their hands. President McKinley 

was determined to prevent such a state of affairs if possible. He 
decided to show the people how an orderly government could be 
established. The first thing done was to give the right to vote to 
all who could read and write, who owned as much as $250 worth of 
property, or who had served in the army of the liberators. These 
voters were allowed to elect the officers of the towns, and after 
that, September, 1900, they selected delegates to a constitutional 
convention. When the convention met, it prepared a constitution 
after the manner of the American states. There was to be in Cuba 
a president, a congress chosen by the people, and a supreme court. 
This constitution was to go into force as soon as the American army 
was withdrawn. 

While the convention was in session the American congress 
passed what was known as the Piatt amendment. Its author was 
The Piatt Senator Piatt, of Connecticut, and it dealt with Cuba, 
amendment It authorized the president of the United States to 
withdraw the troops from the island when the Cuban convention 
adopted the following principles as parts of the constitution of the 
island government : 1 . That no foreign power should secure a 
foothold in the island ; 2. Cuba should incur no debt she cannot 
pay ; 3. the United States might send back their army to rees- 
tablish good order and to see that Cuba keeps her promises to other 
nations ; 4. Cuba should keep up the sanitary reforms we had 



THE POLITICAL LIFE SINCE THE SPANISH WAR 475 

begun ; and 5. the Isle of Pines and some naval stations should 
be ceded to the United States. Cuba hesitated to adopt these 
principles, saying that to do so would weaken her independence. 
But we insisted, and when the Cuban convention saw that we were 
in earnest, it accepted the Piatt amendment. Soon afterwards 
the Cubans elected a president and in 1902 he was inaugurated. 
Immediately the Americans handed over to him all their authority 
and left Cuban soil. During the two and a half years of their con- 
trol of the island they had collected $57,000,000 in taxes and 
spent $55,000,000 on the restoration and improvment of the 
island. The balance was in the Cuban treasury. The United 
States spent many millions in making Cuba independent, and they 
did not ask that a dollar of it be restored. 

While Cuban affairs were being put into order, it was necessary 
to prepare a form of government for the Philippines and Porto 
Rico. As we had never before had a colony, it was Govern- 
well to be careful about what was done. There were ment of 
several steps toward a settled plan, but the form of P^i'iPP^n^s 
government finally adopted is somewhat like that which was in 
use in the American colonies before they became independent of 
Great Britain. There is a governor appointed in Washington. 
He is nominated by the president and confirmed by the senate. 
There is, also, a council which advises the governor, and it has the 
right to approve or reject the laws passed by the Philippine legis- 
lature. There is a lower house of the legislature elected by the 
people. The legislature consisting of these two houses makes 
laws bearing on the home affairs of the colon3^ Matters re- 
lating to the colony's duty to the United States are not left to the 
colonial government. The Philippines are given two delegates in 
the house of representatives in Washington. They may speak on 
affairs which affect the interest of their colony but have no vote. 
In the Philippines men may vote who own property or can read 
and write or who held office during the Spanish period. 

The action of the congress of the United States shows that a 



476 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

difference was made between Porto Rico and the Philippines. In 
each colony it was intended to give the natives as much authority 
as was thought wise. The Porto Ricans were more advanced in, 
self-government and received a larger share of power. The law ^ 
provided that at least five members of the council should be natives. 
The evident purpose of congress was to admit the natives to the 
government as rapidly as they showed that they had learned how 
to discharge the duties of government. In the Philippines there 
has been from time to time an extension of the parts of government 
given to the Filipinos. 

One of the questions that have been discussed frequently since 
1898 is: What shall we finally do with the Philippines? Some 
Wh haU people hope that they will remain permanent American 
we do with possessions. Others think that we should train the 
the Philip- FiHpinos to self-government and then turn the islands 
P'°®^- over to the natives. This question is not yet deter- 

mined, but the share of the Filipinos in their government is being 
steadily extended, and it seems probable that our government 
will soon have to decide what amount of power it will finally 
allow them. Americans who have lived in the islands are divided 
in their opinions on this subject, but they seem to agree that the 
time has not yet come for the United States to withdraw from the 
Philippines, as they have withdrawn from Cuba. 

Another matter which had to be taken up and settled after the 
war with Spain was the construction of a canal by which our navy 
Need of a could get from the Atlantic to the Pacific. Such a 
canal canal had been talked about for many years before the 

war, but to dig it was an immense task and we had long hesitated 
to begin the work. It was now felt that we had such interests on 
the Pacific Ocean that we could hesitate no longer. 

Twenty years before the war began a French company headed 
by de Lesseps, the constructor of the Suez Canal, got a charter 
from the government of Colombia to build a canal across the 
Isthmus of Panama. The company raised $278,000,000 in 




„, .go-Pago Ba. 

BAN ISLANDS 1899 

iricaii Poscssioi s) ^^ 



aoted with particular care.) 



THE POLITICAL LIFE SINCE THE SPANISH WAR 477 

France by the sale of stock and bonds and began work on the 
canal. In 1889 the work stopped because the company xhe French 
was bankrupt. An investigation showed that much canal com- 
fraud and extravagance had marked the progress of the ^^^^ 
Frenchmen. From that time there was never a probability that 
the French canal would be completed. 

The news that the French were going to construct a canal 
alarmed the Americans, who felt that if a canal was built, it ought 
to be owned and controlled by our country. We were TheNicara- 
the people most interested, and we could not be satisfied gua project 
to have a foreign power control the means of passage from one ocean 
to another. So when it seemed that France was going to finish 
the canal at the isthmus, we made a plan to construct one through 
Nicaragua. A company was organized and made a start ; but 
it had little money, and as the government of the United States 
did not come to its aid, the work languished. 

When it was known that the United States was at last ready 
to dig a canal, the friends of the Nicaraguan project began to urge 
that their site be used. At the same time the French a site 
company, which was still in existence, although most selected 
of the stock was owned by a small group of speculators, also urged 
that we take their site. They offered to sell out for -1100,000,000. 
There was much negotiation, and at last it was agreed that the 
government would purchase the plant of the French company 
for $40,000,000, provided Colombia would make a treaty by 
which the government of the United States could acquire a 
legal right to the strip of land through which the canal was to 
go. 

To be fair to Colombia we must remember that a canal across 
the isthmus was the dream of that country from the days of its 
settlement by Spain. It was here that the shipping Colombia's 
of the new world must concentrate, and as a result a dream 
great trade would grow up at Panama ; this commerce would yield 
rich profits to the government which permitted it to pass through 



478 THE PL'AIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

its territory. Colombia was so well convinced of the importance 
of the canal that she concluded that the United States should pay 
roundly for the privilege of digging it. President Roosevelt, 
then at the head of our government, induced the Colombian rep- 
resentative in Washington to agree that Colombia should lease to 
the United States a strip of land six miles wide through which the 
French canal ran. For it we were to pay $10,000,000 in cash and 
$250,000 a year as an annual rental. The government of Colom- 
bia was disappointed ; for it thought the sum offered too small. 
Since we were to pay the French company $40,000,000 for the in- 
complete canal and the Panama railroad, the Colombians felt 
that we should pay more than was proposed to control the site of 
the canal. The French had done comparatively Httle and their 
machinery was nearly useless. The Colombian government refused 
to approve the agreement made in Washington. 

The United States of Colombia is a federated republic, and one 
of the states was Panama, embracing the isthmus. The people of 
The state of Panama were dissatisfied with the refusal of Colombia 
Panama to accept the agreement, for they feared that President 
Roosevelt would decide to have the canal in Nicaragua. In their 
alarm they concluded that the only hope of securing the canal at 
Panama was to revolt from Colombia and set up as an independent 
state under the protection of the United States. A group of 
daring men undertook to carry the revolution through. They 
first enlisted a small band of soldiers. From the agent of the 
French company they secured the money for arms and other ex- 
penses ; for if the canal went to Nicar9,gua, the French company 
would lose the only opportunity it had to sell the canal. One 
of the leaders saw President Roosevelt and asked if he would help 
the proposed republic. The reply was that we could not assist 
a revolution against Colombia, but that if a new repubhc was 
established, it would be recognized as an independent state. 
This answer satisfied the men who planned the revolt. 

Their plans were made for November 4, 1903 ; but it became 



THE POLITICAL LIFE SINCE THE SPANISH WAR 479 

necessary to act a day earlier. On the 3d a body of Colombian 
soldiers arrived at Colon, at the eastern end of the xherevoiu- 
Panama railroad. They were sent to arrest the tiononthe 
leaders of the revolt, who were in Panama, at the '^thmus 
western end of the railroad. Before they could cross the isthmus, 
the revolutionists raised their flag, seized the Colombian officials 
in Panama, and bribed the commander of the soldiers to take his 
force away. President Roosevelt gave orders that the American 
warships in the harbors should not allow any troops to land at 
either Colon or Panama. He did this because, as he claimed, we 
were, by a treaty with Colombia, bound to keep the railroad open 
for the movement of trains and the use of the nations of the 
world. His action in the matter made it impossible for Colombia 
to send troops to put down the revolt. 

Thus, Panama became an independent state. President 
Roosevelt recognized it as such, and fifteen days after the revolt 
was begun a treaty was made by which Panama The treaty 
ceded to the United States a strip of land ten miles with 
wide lying along the French canal. For it we paid *°*™* 



),000,000 in cash and promised to pay $250,000 a year, begin- 
ning in 1913. We also guaranteed to protect the state of Panama 
from any nation that undertook to seize her territory. The next 
step, taking over the property of the French company, followed 
quickly. 

The engineers now set to work. The plan adopted was to con- 
struct'near the eastern coast a great dam against which the water 
of the Chagres River was to accumulate so as to form a The plan of 
lake twenty-two miles long. The canal leads from the canal 
the shore to this dam, where great locks raise the ships to the sur- 
face of the lake. From the remote end of the lake there is a deep 
cut through the highest ground in the isthmus. This is called the 
Culebra cut and is eight miles long. From its western end the 
ships are lowered by locks to the western stretch of the canal which 
runs at sea level to the Pacific Ocean. At its narrowest point, 



480 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

in the Culebra cut, the canal is 300 feet wide. It will receive the 
largest ships, and the lake which has been made will allow several 
vessels to pass one another. The cost was about $375,000,000, 
and it was opened to the world in 1914. (See the map, p. 499.) 

Let us now turn to the poUtical affairs of the past fifteen years. 
In all our political differences great opposing principles usually- 
Party stand forth. Parties keep them in view, and some 
principles i^ien believe in one set of principles and others be- 
lieve in another set. It is our task here to see what have been 
the principles for which the two great parties have contended since 
1900 and to learn how their contests have been fought. 

The most marked difference in principles has been in connection 

with the great monopolies called trusts. These organizations 

have usually been formed in connection with manu- 

Trusts ... _^ ... . . ^ 

lacturmg enterprises. By uniting the majority of 

the factories which make a certain kind of merchandise into one 

great firm we have what is called a trust. The first successful 

trust was that which dealt with the refining of petroleum. It 

was known as the Standard Oil Company. The head and founder 

was John D. Rockefeller, of Cleveland, Ohio. 

The trusts were defended on the ground that they were more 
economical than the older form of manufactures. Combine a 
Arguments large number of factories into one, said the friends of 
for and this kind of industry, and there is a great saving in the 

against management and selling of the article produced. In- 

stead of having a large number of presidents there is now only one 
president. There is only one set of bookkeepers, one set of 
traveling salesmen, and one set of buyers. The opponents of 
trusts declared that they were too powerful, that they broke down 
their business rivals by unfair means, that they would not let new 
enterprises be established, and that they first drove all their rivals 
from the market and then fixed the selhng price at any figure 
they chose. 

The question of what to do about the trusts came up in con- 



THE POLITICAL LIFE SINCE THE SPANISH WAR 481 

gress, and in 1890 a law was passed to forbid the creation of any 
combination in restraint of trade. This means that no The law of 
factories or other business concerns were to combine in 1890 
order to get the whole market or to keep their rivals from sharing 
it. The law was known as the anti-trust law. A great many 
people did not know just what would be considered a "combina- 
tion in restraint of trade" ; and as the government did not take 
immediate steps toward the enforcement of the law, trusts con- 
tinued to be formed as though there was no law against them. 

Bryan, the leader of the democrats, was outspoken in saying 
that the law of 1890 ought to be enforced ; and if he had been 
elected president, he would perhaps have given orders Roosevelt 
that some of the trusts be indicted under that law. and the 
He said so much along this line that in 1901 the coun- *™^*^ 
try was becoming aroused. The people were coming to ask that 
the law should be enforced, or a law that could be enforced should 
be passed. It was at this time that Roosevelt became president. 
He believed that the law of 1890 should be enforced, and he began 
quietly to gather evidence to show that some of the trusts had 
violated the law. It was a slow task, and many things had to be 
done to get the facts that would be considered as evidence. In 
many speeches President Roosevelt showed that he wished to 
restrain trusts. He believed that wealth was too powerful in 
politics. He favored the restriction of the speculative element 
in business. All these demands were popular with the masses, 
and he was successful in 1904 over his democratic opponent, 
Alton B. Parker, of New York. His principles, however, did not 
please a large part of his party, and he was soon engaged Election of 
in a bitter struggle against the more conservative re- ^904 
publicans. The more advanced republicans supported him in 
all he did. They were especially strong in the West. 

President Roosevelt's second t^m of office expired in 1909. 
Although he had tried hard to get congress to adopt his ideas there 
had been little success. The most important measures that had 
2i 



482 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



been passed were : a law to give the railway commission the 
Roosevelt's right to regulate the rates railroads may charge ; a 
policies law requiring the manufacturers of food products to 

label their goods correctly, and prohibiting the use of impurities 

in food ; and a law for- 
bidding a corporation 
to contribute to the 
campaign funds of a 
political party. He 
himself felt that his 
work was only begun. 
He had exerted a pow- 
erful influence on the 
mind of the people, and 
he believed that in time 
they would force con- 
gress to carry out his 
policies. But in the 
interval he wished them 
to have a leader who 
believed in the Roose- 
velt reforms and who 
would not give up the 
fight to secure them. 
As he was president 
from the autumn of 
1901 to the spring of 
1909, he refused to 
become a candidate for another term and threw all his influ- 
ence in favor of William H. Taft, of Ohio. The democrats gave 
Election of Bryan a third nomination. They also demanded the 
1908 restraint of trusts %nd the reduction of the power of 

corporations. In the minds of most people Bryan seemed more 
likely to deal severely with business than Taft, the repubHcan 




William H. Taft 



THE POLITICAL LIFE SINCE THE SPANISH WAR 483 

nominee. Many of those who desired reforms preferred to have 
them come through a moderate poUcy. This idea was so strong 
in the East, the Middle West, and the Pacific states that Taft 
carried all these parts of the country and was elected president. 
Bryan's strength was in the South and in some of the rural states 
of the Far West. 

In the campaign before the election the republicans promised 
to revise the tariff. To carry out this promise President Taft 
called congress in extra session, and the result was the Payne-Ai- 
Payne-Aldrich act. The president said it was the ^rich tariff 
''best tariff law the republican party has ever made." But all 
the democrats and a large number of Western republicans declared 
that it made little or no reduction in rates. When Taft came out 
in defense of the law, he displeased those republicans who op- 
posed it. They said he was under the influence of the manufactur- 
ers. As they were generally warm admirers of Roosevelt, they 
accused him of giving up the Roosevelt policies. They were soon 
at open war with the rest of their party and became known as 
"insurgents." They replied by calling their opponents "stand- 
patters," from the slang expression "stand pat." The two terms 
soon became the accepted names for the two factions. The 
division in the party became so wide that the insurgents at last 
began to act with the democrats in matters which came up in 
congress. President Taft generally took the side of the stand- 
patters. 

In 1910 the democrats elected a majority of the members of 
the house of representatives, but there was still a republican 
senate and republican president. Thus, they could not xaft and 
pass what laws they chose, but they were able to check Roosevelt 
the lawmaking of their opponents. As the election '" '^" 
of 1912 approached it began to be seen that the divided republi- 
cans might lose also the election of the president. The insurgents 
made every possible effort to nominate Roosevelt, and the stand- 
patters worked equally hard to nominate Taft for a second term. 



484 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



The nominating convention was full of bitter quarrels, and each 
side charged its opponents with fraud. But the friends of Taft 
were in the majority, and he was made the regular republican 
candidate. The friends of Roosevelt believed that they had been 

badly treated and 
withdrew from the 
convention. They 
held a separate 
meeting, and a con- 
vention was called 
to form a new 
party. It met 
after a few weeks 
and organized the 
progressive party, 
nominating Roose- 
velt for the presi- 
dency. 

The democrats 
were not so badly 
divided as the re- 
publicans. They 
Wilson met in 

elected conven- 

tion in Baltimore, 
where after a 
stormy session they 
nominated Wood- 
row Wilson, of New Jersey. He had been president of Princeton 
University before 1910, when he became governor of New Jersey. 
He was known as an able head of the state government, and as 
an excellent orator. He received a majority of the electoral 
votes and became president on March 4, 1913. 

The first half of his administration has witnessed some very 




Woodrow Wiison 



THE POLITICAL LIFE SINCE THE SPANISH WAR 485 

important acts of government. First of all he took up the ques- 
tion of the tariff, calling congress in special session for that pur- 
pose. A bill was passed which has become known as the Under- 
wood tariff, because Underwood, of Alabama, was the man who had 
most to do in framing it. It sought to reduce the xheUnder- 
tariff to a lower basis than has hitherto been in force *ood tariff 
since the civil war. To make up for the loss of revenue that 
would thus ensue the law provided for a federal tax on incomes. 

Another important law passed under Wilson was the currency 
act of 1913. It provided a means of issuing paper money in times 
when panics threaten, so that men who need money to xhe cur- 
carry them through the period of crisis may borrow it rency and 
without paying unfair rates of interest. It is believed *^® *'^"^*^ 
that such a law will make it impossible to have severe panics. 
In 1914 President Wilson by persistence got congress to carry 
through bills to deal with the relation of trusts to the government. 

An important matter that President Wilson has had to con- 
sider is our relation with Mexico. Just before his inauguration 
there was a revolution in this republic. The former President 
Mexican president, Madero, was overthrown by a wuson and 
part of the army led by General Huerta. A few days ^«'"<^° 
later Madero was killed, apparently by the order of Huerta. 
President Wilson refused to recognize Huerta as head of the 
Mexican government, and when a part of the Mexican people 
rose in an armed attempt to drive Huerta out of the government, 
he showed that he sympathized with them. For a long time it 
seemed that some small act of hostility occurring between the 
Mexicans and Americans living in Mexico might make it necessary 
for our government to declare war. American citizens in the 
country reported that the people were very hostile toward Amer- 
icans. The president ordered warships sent to the Mexican ports 
in order to furnish protection if it were needed. Finally, in April, 
1914, an officer and a boat's crew from one of the ships were 
arrested as they landed at Tampico for gasoline. After some 



486 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

discourtesies the prisoners were released. The admiral command- 
ing our ships demanded that the Mexicans should salute our flag. 
Huerta, to whom the demand was referred, decided that no salute 
should be given. 

Then followed a critical moment. A large body of marines 
was landed at Vera Cruz, and the town was occupied after the 
At the verge Mexicans had offered resistance. It seemed that war 
of war had begun. Nobody doubted that the United States 

could conquer Mexico if they tried ; but to wage a war would mean 
the loss of many lives and the expenditure of a great deal of 
money. The advantage might be great for Mexico, who sadly 
needed some strong hand to interfere and force her people to make 
peace ; but it could be only a great task for us. President Wilson 
and Bryan, his secretary of state, both desired to avoid war. 
After a few days of waiting a way out was discovered when the 
governments of Argentina, Brazil, and Chile — popularly called 
the A. B. C. powers — offered to mediate. Both the United 
States and Mexico accepted. The mediators then appointed 
commissioners who met on neutral territory at Niagara Falls, heard 
the complaints of both sides, and made an adjustment by which 
Huerta finally agreed to retire from Mexico. Since that time, 
July, 1914, to July, 1915, two factions have striven for mastery in 
Mexico, and our government has waited patiently to see which 
would win and thus secure our recognition. 

President Wilson's unvvillingness in carrying matters to the point 
of war caused some people to think he lacked energy. European 
The presi- newspapers, especially those printed in the most war- 
dent's poUcy like countries, were very critical. But the issue of the 
affair seems to justify all he did. We are a nation of peace, 
we do not desire to extend our territory in the direction of Mexico, 
and rather than resort to war with its many horrors we are willing 
to deal patiently with a foreign power that offends us. President 
Wilson and Secretary Bryan showed much forbearance in han- 
dling the Mexican incident of 1914. 



THE POLITICAL LIFE SINCE THE SPANISH WAR 487 



QUESTIONS 

I. On what grounds did the republicans endeavor to win the election 
of 1900? What position did the democrats take? What was the result 
of the election? Describe the attitude of President McKinley on the 
relations of North and South. How was his course interrupted ? 

II. What promises bound us in regard to Cuba? What were some of 
our tasks in restoring the island to prosperity ? What was learned about 
yellow fever ? Describe its effects. 

III. What condition threatened to seize Cuba as soon as the United 
States withdrew? How did President McKinley propose to establish 
regular government in Cuba? Who were allowed to vote? How was 
the Cuban constitution modeled? What was the Piatt amendment? 
What were the terms ? How was it received by the Cubans ? What did 
we do after it was adopted ? Summarize the results of our occupation of 
Cuba. 

IV. Why did we come slowly to a permanent form of government for 
the Philippine Islands ? What are the chief features ? Who may vote ? 
How does the government of Porto Rico differ from that of the Philip- 
pines? Describe the Porto Riean government. What is the result of 
the discussion in regard to the final disposal of the Philippines? 

V. Why was an isthmian canal needed ? Why had it not already been 
begun by the United States? Describe the attempt of the French to 
construct the canal. Describe the plan for a canal in Nicaragua. Which 
of these two canal sites was taken over by the United States? What 
price was agreed upon? 

VI. Show how Colombia valued her control of the isthmus. Describe 
the first agreement in regard to the canal. How did Colombia treat it? 
What was the relation of the state of Panama to Colombia? How did 
the people of Panama feel about the repudiation of the agreement by 
Colombia? What was their plan of meeting the situation? How did 
they get money for their project ? What did President Roosevelt say to 
them? Describe the revolution in Panama. How did the orders of 
'Roosevelt affect the success of the revolution? Describe the treaty ^vith 
Panama. Draw a sketch map of the canal. Describe the Culebra cut. 
What is the capacity of the canal? its cost? 

VII. What is a trust? Which was the first successful trust? On 
what grounds are the trusts defended and criticized ? Describe the anti- 
trust law of 1890. Why was it not enforced for several years after it was 
passed? What was Bryan's attitude toward the trusts? How did public 



488 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

opinion grow in this respect ? What position did Roosevelt take when he 
became president? Describe the election of 1904. What division began 
to appear in the republican party? Name the important measures of 
Roosevelt's second term. What was his idea about his successor? Who 
was choosen to succeed him? 

VIII. What was the Payne-Aldrich tariff? What was Taft's course 
in regard to it? What was the consequence of his position? Who were 
the insurgents? the standpatters? To what extent did the insurgents 
go? On which side did Taft generally take his stand? 

IX. What was the result of the congressional elections of 1910? How 
did the result forecast the election of 1912? What two republican candi- 
dates now appeared? Which was nominated? What new party was 
formed? Under what circumstances? Whom did the democrats 
nominate? What was the result of the election? 

X. Describe the Underwood tariff law. How was the loss of revenue 
to be made up? Describe the currency legislation of 1913. What other 
subjects did Wilson have congress take up ? Describe the affairs of Mexico 
immediately before the inauguration of Wilson. What position did 
Wilson take in regard to them ? What danger for the United States lay 
in this state of affairs ? How did we come to land troops in Mexico ? In 
what manner was the problem of Huerta solved ? On what grounds was 
President Wilson's policy criticized? What can you say in favor of it? 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

The Death of President McKinley ; The Early Career of President 
Roosevelt ; American Improvements in Cuba ; The P*resent Government 
in the Philippines ; The Engineering Problems of the Panama Canal ; 
The Panama Revolution. 



CHAPTER XXXVI 
THE PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLE, 1865-1915 

In studying the history of our country we must not think that 
the history of parties is the only thing worth knowing. Equally 
important is the story of the progress of our industrial Growth of 
and intellectual life. This is especially true of the years business 
since the war between the North and the South. While the men at 
Washington have been occupied with lawmaking and political con- 
tests, the American people have made rapid progress in every form 
of activity. Since 1860 our population has increased a little less 
than threefold. But the value of our farm property has increased 
fivefold, the value of our manufactured products elevenfold, and 
the value of mineral products still more greatly. Thus wealth 
has increased more rapidly than population. 

During this period the last territory of our possessions between 
the Atlantic and the Pacific has become a state, and only Alaska 
and Hawaii now remain in the territorial condition. _ ^ ^ 

Contrasts 

In 1865 the union consisted of thirty-six states : m 
1915 there are forty-eight. In 1865 there was a great deal of 
unsettled land in the West which the government was giving 
away to homeseekers : in 1915 the public land that is suitable for 
agriculture is nearly taken up. In 1865 we spoke continually of 
our vast undeveloped regions : in 1915 we are looking to other 
countries for large undeveloped resources. In 1865 we were shij)- 
ping abroad immense quantities of food : in 1915 we are coming 
to see that our population has grown to be such a multitude that 
we shall soon need all the food we produce. In fact, we are already 
importing some food products from South America. These con- 
trasts serve to show what has been the progress of fifty years. 

489 



490 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 




New Municipal Buildings and Campanile, Springfield, Mass. On the left is the Auditorium 
and on the right is the City Hall. The beautiful campanile is 300 feet high. 

This is an illustration of the growing tendency to erect handsome city buildings. • 



THE PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLK, 1865-1915 491 

One of the things we should notice in this place is the gain 
of the town life over the country life. If we say that a village 
becomes a town when it has a population of 2500, we Growth of 
shall see that there has been a large increase in the town towJ^s 
population of the United States in the last fifty years. In 1870 
the towns of this size had 27 per cent of the total population of the 
country : in 1910 they had 46 per cent. This means that in 1915 
about half of our people are engaged in the callings that towns- 
people follow and are not concerned with farming. 

In 1865 there were few parts of the country in which there 
were not large supplies of timber. Very little impression had 
been made on the great areas of white pine in the Disappear- 
northern and central parts of the United States, or on ing forests 
the vast stretches of the long-leaf pine of the South Atlantic states. 
At the end of fifty years there is quite another story to tell. The 
forests of pine have melted away before the ax of the lumberman, 
and the country is threatened with a lumber famine if more 
careful methods are not adopted to protect and cultivate the 
portion of the forests that are left to us. One of the greatest 
perils to the timber is the fires that are started in dry seasons 
through the careless making of fires. They run over large areas, 
destroying the young trees which if left to grow would soon re- 
place those which are used for lumber. A forest fire of a day may 
destroy the young growth of many years. 

The disappearance of the forests set many cautious men to 
thinking, and the result was a concerted movement by congress 
and state legislatures about 1900 to do something to couserva- 
preserve not only the forests, but other resources tion: i. 
which nature has given us for our support. This policy Forest 

• reserves 

is known as the conservation policy. It has three mam 
features : 1. The preservation of the forests by creating reserva- 
tions owned by the government. Parts of the great Western 
forests still unsold have been set aside as permanent reserves, 
which may never go into the hands of private owners. By care- 



492 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

fully cutting the timber and cultivating the young trees the forests 
may be made a perpetual source of lumber. The reservations 
have been created in the regions which serve as the headwaters 
of rivers. Cutting away the forests in such regions allows the 
waters from the spring rains to rush down in torrents soon after 
they have fallen. When the slopes are covered with under- 
growth and trees, the waters are held back, soak into the soil, 
and seep out again in springs which feed the streams throughout 
a longer period of the summer. President Roosevelt gave strong 
support to the cause of conservation, and by July 1, 1909, orders 
were given to convert 194,000,000 acres into reserves. Besides 
the reserves in the West, congress has appropriated money with 
which large tracts have been purchased in the northern and 
southern Alleghanies. Such tracts are looked on as the beginning 
of a vast reservation to be known as the Appalachian Park. 

2. Another phase of the conservation policy is irrigation. 
Large parts of the region west of the Mississippi River are capa- 
ble of irrigation, and when so treated, they prove to 

mga on ^^ ^^^^ fertile. The first American citizens to apply 
irrigation to these lands were the Mormons, who converted the 
arid shores of the Great Salt Lake into fruitful fields. Before 
1900 many other private enterprises were established for the 
same purpose. Great companies would establish a system of irri- 
gation in some valley, building a storage dam and ditches, and 
selling to the farmers along the ditches the privilege of taking 
water. Between the farmers and the companies were many 
grounds for misunderstanding, and quarrels frequently arose. 
The result was that opinion began to demand that the government 
should construct dams and ditches and rent the water rights to 
the farmers. In 1902 congress appropriated $20,000,000 for irri- 
gation purposes and ordered that it should be repaid out of the 
sales of the lands subject to irrigation. This measure has proved 
a wise one, and a great many acres have been made available for 
farming. But we must not forget that there are vast areas in the 



THE PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLE, 1865-1915 493 

West in which irrigation cannot be estabhshed, because they are 
so situated that water cannot be obtained to irrigate them. 

3. A third form of conservation refers to the preservation of 
our mineral lands. Formerly these lands were distributed to 
individuals on liberal terms, and they were eventually 3. Mineral 
sold to large companies, generally at prices out of i^^ds 
proportion to the wealth that lay beneath them. This was 
illustrated in the case of the Alaska coal lands, about which a 
great deal was said while Taft was president. Investigation 
showed that rich coal fields existed in Alaska, near the shore. 
Soon afterwards it was discovered that a large number of claims 
had been filed for this land and that they were about to pass into 
the hands of a rich syndicate. The law provides that only 160 
acres shall pass to one applicant, and that he shall pay ten dollars 
an acre for the land. It was charged that most of the persons who 
had filed claims acted for the company which desired to get pos- 
session of the lands, and that they would transfer their claims 
to that company as soon as possible. The syndicate would thus 
get at a small price land which was thought to be worth $750 
an acre. A great deal was said in the newspapers about this 
matter, and the result was that all the claims were held up 
for a while. Finally it was decided that the Alaska coal lands 
should remain in the hands of the government and that they 
would be operated by lease. To enable the coal to be carried 
to market, the government decided to build a railroad from the 
mines to the coast. This action meant that the United States 
was willing to adopt government ownership of some great branch 
of industry, and it was opposed by those who thought that all 
forms of business should be left to the direction of the individuals. 

One of the important changes of the last fifty years is the great 
improvement in the means of travel and of carrying freight. 
Railroads began in the United States in 1828. At Early rail- 
first they existed in short lines connecting important roads 
towns or waterways. When a man took a long journey he would 



494 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



have to change cars at the end of each short road and purchase 
a new ticket. Eleven different companies once owned the Hne 
which now connects Albany and Buffalo. To the people of the 
time it seemed a great convenience to have the eleven railroads ; 
for, although it was some trouble to change cars ten times be- 
tween these two towns, it was less inconvenient than the former 
journey by canal boat. 




De Witt Clinton, A Ra.i.u.d Ti,.)i, li \r,._.i 
From a photograph of the original train, lent by the New York Central Lines. 

About 1865 the short railroads were being combined into 
longer ones. Thus there grew up trunk lines from one dis- 
Railroad tant city to another, and many of these lines bought 
systems or built branch lines running out on either side. In the 
course of time railroad building became a thing for large companies, 
and the short lines were rarely built. In the West and South- 
west railroads usually went before the settlement of the country. 
There are parts of the West in which the railroads ran many miles 
in unpeopled prairie, and it was many years after they were 
built before the country through which they passed was densely 



M 



THE PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLE, 1865-1915 495 

enough settled to create business suffieient to pay the railroad 
owners for their investment. 

Early in the period of which we speak there appeared a great 
deal of opposition to the railroads on the part of the people. It 
was said that the roads had unequal rates, and that complaints 
they gave free passes liberally, which meant that against 
enough money must be taken from the people who paid ""^'i^o^^s 
to make up for the free rides given to those who had passes. The 
habit had grown up of giving some shippers of freight what were 
called rebates. This means that they were charged the same 
rates that other people paid, but that a certain part of what they 
paid was handed back to them by the railroad companies. The 
manufacturers and merchants who did not get rebates could not 
make as much money as those who got them. Complaints 
came loudest from the interior states of the union, where the 
people felt most dependent on the railroads. 

Several remedies for these things were suggested. One was 
that the government should take over the railroads, paying the 
owners for them. This was a practice largely followed Railroad 
in Europe, but it was not approved in the United States, commissions 
Our people have generally thought that the government should 
not own and run any kind of business that private persons or 
companies can own and run. After much discussion, it was at 
last decided to create railroad commissions, which should super- 
vise the railroads and see that they did not do the things that the 
law said they should not do. Rebates and free passes were for- 
bidden. 

The first railroad commissions were created in the states. But 
it was seen that it was necessary to have a federal railroad com- 
mission because so much of the business of the railroads a federal 
was ,from one state to another. Only the federal commission 
government can regulate this kind of business. Thus it happened 
that in 1887 congress created a federal railroad commission. It 
was to inquire into the way the interstate railroads conducted 



496 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

their business. There was a strong feeling that it should have 
the power to say whether or not the rates fixed by the roads were 
just and proper ; but congress did not think it well to give the com- 
mission that much authority. In the administration of President 
Roosevelt this power was added to those already given, and now 
the great roads of the country must not raise their rates without 
the consent of the commission. 

The development of railroads signifies a greater capacity of 
communication between different parts of the country. It 
The tele- ^^^ made New Orleans as close to New York as Boston 
graph and was to Hartford in former days. The same kind of serv- 
teiephone -^g j^^^g ^^qq^i done for men by the invention of the 
telegraph and the telephone. The former was perfected by S. B. F. 
Morse in 1844, and was first put into operation in a short line be- 
tween Baltimore and Washington. One of the first services it did 
was to send to Washington an account hour by hour of the pro- 
ceedings of the democratic convention then in session in Baltimore. 
The telephone was put into use in America about 1877. Several 
men had a share in the invention, but the finishing touches were 
added by Professor Alexander G. Bell, of Boston. The newspapers 
were filled with accounts of a wonderful exhibition he gave in 
which a gentleman in Boston talked with another in Salem. It 
seemed astonishing that letters could be read in Boston and heard 
over the wire in Salem. The papers predicted that the new in- 
vention would drive out the telegraph, but in this they were mis- 
taken. In 1896 wireless telegraphy was invented by Marconi, 
an Italian. It has been of vast service at sea. It has been a 
means of summoning help to ships in danger, and in doing so it 
has saved many persons from death. 

Another means of utilizing electricity for the comfort of man 

is the trolley car. In 1865 the towns were served by horse cars. 

Through every busy street gaunt horses tugged at 

loaded cars of human freight. It was a thing which 

touched the sympathy of all who loved dumb animals. This 



THE PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLE, 1865-1915 



497 



state of things was greatly improved when in 1885 an electric 
street car-line was successfully operated in Richmond, Virginia. 
Other cities quickly followed the example of Richmond, and within 
a few years the electric cars were being used all over the country 
towns. They have entirely replaced the horse cars ; for they are 
not only more sightly but larger and faster. 




An Early Horse Car 

The growth of the large cities made a demand for very rapid 
systems of transit, and the electric surface cars were found in- 
sufficient to carry the people who wished to go from Rapid 
one place to another. The result was the invention transit 
of other means of travel. First came the elevated lines, built 
over the crowded streets and having trains that went much 
faster than the surface cars. Even these proved insufficient for 
the heavy traffic, and underground lines were constructed. New 
York's system of subways, as the underground roads are called 
in America, is still unfinished ; but it will eventually be a wonder- 
ful series of tunnels in which express and local trains dart hither 
and thither with vast numbers of passengers. By having improved 
rapid transit a large part of our city population has been able to 
find homes in the suburbs, where life is less crowded and more 
healthy than in the centers of the cities. 
2k 



498 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

Recent years have seen the revival of canal building. This 
form of water communication is not used, as formerly, as an or- 
dinary means of communication. Wherever railroads 
Canals 

can be more profitably used there they are still the 

common means of transit. The most famous of such canals is 
that which is just finished on the Isthmus of Panama. Next to 
it is the canal constructed with the aid of congress around the 
falls on the St. Mary River, connecting Lakes Huron and Superior. 
This canal is popularly called the ''Soo," from Sault Ste. Marie, 
as the falls are called. Its chief business is to afford a cheap means 
of bringing the iron ore from the shores of Lake Superior to the 
many iron furnaces in northern Ohio. Through it passes annually 
more than three times as many tons of freight as pass through the 
Suez Canal. In 1914 a canal was completed across the base of 
the long arm of Cape Cod, making it possible for coastwise shipping 
to avoid the dangerous passage outside of the cape, where there 
are many shoals. This canal is part of a larger plan that has 
been urged by some members of congress for the construction of 
an inland waterway from Boston to the coast of North Carolina. 
A canal connects the Delaware and Chesapeake bays, and another 
connects the Delaware and Raritan rivers passing through New 
Jersey. Still another connects Chesapeake Bay with Albemarle 
Sound, and another leads out of the North Carolina sounds into 
the Atlantic Ocean at Beaufort. It is hoped that this series of 
canals may be deepened and extended so that ocean-going vessels 
may be able to pass through it to the seas south of Cape Hatteras. 
A marked feature of the history of the past fifty years is the 
development of organized labor. Unions began to be organized 
The labor in a small way early in the nineteenth century, but it 
unions was not until about 1850 that the local unions began 

to be brought together into great central unions. The purpose 
is to make laboring men feel that they are one body throughout 
the country. Among the prominent objects are the passage of 
laws for the protection of laborers, raising wages, and the shorten- 



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THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



Three 
prominent 
organiza- 
tions 



ing of the day in which laborers are required to work. The unions 
have generally relied on strikes to secure their demands. They 
have exercised a strong influence in political matters, and 
many laws for the benefit of labor have been passed because the 
unions have influenced the action of the lawmakers. Some 
hard feeling has been raised between the laborers and the employers 
on account of this struggle ; but it cannot be denied that the living 
conditions of American laborers are much better to-day than fifty 
years ago. 

Three of the labor organizations have been prominent in our 
history. The first was the Knights of Labor, founded in 1869. 
It was built on the idea that all laborers, regardless of 
their trades, should come together in local unions, and 
that these locals should be united in a solid army of 
labor. The organization flourished for a while under 
the wise leadership of Terrence V. Powderly. It lost favor about 
1886 when there were some violent strikes in which the Knights 
were supposed to have been associated with a group of violent 
agitators. About this time a second great labor organization was 
coming into prominence. It was the American Federation of 
Labor ; and it was built upon the idea that men and women of 
similar trades should form trade-unions and that these unions 
should be united in a grand federation. In a local of the Knights 
could be found men of all kinds of trades, men who did not know 
one another well, and who w^re not so apt to stand together in a 
time of trial. The men in a trade-union were accustomed to work 
together and knew whom to depend upon. The influence of the 
American Federation is now greater than that of the Knights. A 
third form of labor organization is the Industrial Workers of the 
World. They believe in socialism. That is, they demand 
that all the profits of a business enterprise be divided among the 
laborers in the enterprise. The Industrial Workers have at- 
tracted much attention through their association with several 
important strikes. 



THE PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLE, 1865-1915 501 

In educational matters the past fifty years have been a period 
of remarkable development. When it began, public schools were 
established in every state, except in some Southern Growth of 
states, and they were about to be established there, the public 
The progress of the period has been in making the ^^^°°^^ 
schools more useful and abundant. The American ideal is that 
every boy and girl shall have opportunity for an education in 
keeping with the calling he or she wishes to follow. Besides the 
grammar schools, which have been wonderfully improved in the 
quality of the teaching, the high school system has been made as 
efficient as some of the smaller colleges before 1865. At the same 
time the opportunity has been enlarged by establishing industrial 
schools, commercial schools, night schools, all designed for special 
needs. There is no reason why, in most of our American towns, 
a boy, however poor, should find it impossible to get the training 
that will fit him for any trade ; or lead him to a profession. The 
result has been to increase in a large way the efficiency of our 
workmen and business men. 

There has been the same kind of improvement in the colleges 
and universities. The older colleges, as Harvard, Yale, Columbia, 
and Princeton, have increased their number of students Growth of 
until there are thousands where there were formerly only the colleges 
hundreds. They have also enlarged the courses they offer to the 
students. Formerly, the small number of students took mostly 
the same studies. Now there are many courses, taught by a 
large number of instructors ; and a student is given opportunity 
to choose his subjects from a large number of electives. It has 
made a college education a different thing from what it was in 
1865. 

While the old colleges of the East have been growing into 
universities the state universities of the West have been developing 
in a similar manner. They are founded as the highest state uni- 
part of the state educational system. First, a student versities 
goes through the primary school, then the grammar school, then 



502 thp: plain story of American history 

the high school, then the college department of the university, 
and last of all the graduate or professional school of the state 
university. He goes from one school to another on certificate, 
and everywhere the instruction is free. No better and more 
economical system of education has been devised in America 
for all the people. Most of the state universities are co-edu- 
cational. 

During the period under consideration several large universities 
have been established, among them the Johns Hopkins and the 
New uni- Chicago Universities, both of which have had a great 
versities influence on higher education in the United States. 
The Johns Hopkins University is especially notable because 
it introduced graduate courses leading to the degree of doctor of 
philosophy into the United States. The university was founded 
by a wealthy citizen of Baltimore, who gave it $3,500,000, which 
was then considered a very large endowment. It devoted itself 
solely to graduate work, after the plan of the German universities. 
Its work was welcomed by the young American scholars, who were 
anxious to complete the best courses of instruction in a university 
in their' own land. The influence of Johns Hopkins University 
was soon seen in the creation of graduate departments at the older 
universities. Other new universities were also created. One of 
them was the Chicago University, which has been a great influence 
in the Middle West. Another was Leland Stanford Jr. Univer- 
sity, in California. These institutions were founded by private 
gifts and proved quite as efficient as the great western state 
universities or the older universities of the East. 

Another step forward in education has been in teaching improved 
methods of agriculture. In 1862 the government of the United 
Instruction States decided to give each state land or money to be 
in agricui- devoted to this purpose. The result is the creation 
*"'"® of agricultural and mechanical colleges in most of the 

states, supported by federal and state appropriations. In con- 
nection with them agricultural experiment stations have been 



I 



THE PROGRESS OF THE PEOPLE, 1865-1915 503 

established. Out of the teaching and the experimenting with 
improved crops have come better methods of farming, a better 
trained class of farmers, and many new and more productive 
varieties of plants. By this means the average farm yields more 
than it yielded fifty years ago, and it seems certain that it will 
yet give still greater returns to the farmer. As compared with 
European farms, there is much room for further development. 

It is like a democratic country to insist that education 
shall be given to all. On that principle we have made the greatest 
efforts to bring into the schools the children of the Democracy 
humblest as well as the highest classes. The schools of the 
are open to the boys and girls of immigrant parents, ^"^ °°^ 
and they have been very useful in instilling American principles 
in these children. Likewise, the federal government has spent 
large sums on the Indian schools. In the South the states have 
supported schools for the negroes, paying for them largely out of 
the funds raised from the white taxpayers. All this happens 
because it is generally believed that the greatest calamity that 
can overtake a country is to have the people grow up in ignorance. 

A nation is happiest when it has most of sound intelligence, 
strong and honorable character, a love of humanity as it is taught 
by the great religious leaders of the world, and sound health 
under the direction of able physicians. In all these matters we 
are fortunate. It is the duty of every citizen, man or woman, 
to strive to make each line of action more successful. Inasmuch 
as we succeed in this respect we are sure to succeed as a nation, 
It is in the days of youth that we can most certainly give our- 
selves to such duties. 

QUESTIONS 

I. Explain some of the ways in which we have progressed since 
1865. Name some striking points of contrast. Describe the progress 
of the towns. What effect does it have on food production? What is 
the history of our forests within this period? What is the cause of the 
disappearance of the forests? 



504 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

II. What is meant by conservation? Name three ways in which it 
has been attempted. Describe the plans to save the forests. What 
are the effects of cutting the timber near the rivers? What has been 
done to estabUsh reservations? In what parts of the country has irriga- 
tion been established? Describe irrigation under private control. Why 
was it better to have public control? What has congress done for irriga- 
tion ? What has usually been the method of disposing of mineral lands ? 
What was the problem in regard to the Alaska coal lands? How was it 
finally decided ? 

III. Describe the early condition of railroads. What changes have 
been made in them? Why are the long lines more convenient than 
short lines? How did railroads help develop the country? What com- 
plaints were made against the railroads? Describe rebates. What 
remedies were suggested ? Why do we object to state ownership? What is 
the duty of the railroad commissions ? Where were they first established ? 
How did a national railroad commission become established ? What could 
it do ? How has its power been extended ? 

IV. Describe the invention of the telegraph and the telephone. De- 
scribe the invention of electric cars. Describe the development of rapid 
transit. What has been the result in cities? Why have we begun to 
pay attention to canals? Describe the "Soo" Canal. What system of 
canals is planned for the Atlantic coast? In what parts has it 
been finished? 

V. Describe the beginning of labor unions in America. Name 
some of their objects. Why has hard feeling been created? 

VI. Describe the growth of the public schools since 1865. In what 
new lines have the schools developed? What is the American ideal for 
the public schools? In what respects have the colleges developed? De- 
scribe the position of the state university in the state's educational system. 
For what is the Johns Hopkins University especially notable? Name 
some other prominent universities recently established. Describe the 
development of instruction in agriculture. Show how the spirit of de- 
mocracy is in our schools. 

SUGGESTED TOPICS 

A History of the Growth of Your Own Town in Comparison with the 
Growth of the County in which it is Situated ; The Preservation of the 
Forests ; The Federal Raih-oad Commission : The Career of Horace Mann ; 
The Public School Law of Your State ; The Curriculum of a Modern Col- 
lege or University. 



APPENDIX 
THE DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE 

(Adopted by the Continental Congress, July 4th, 1776.) 

In CONGRESS, July 4, 1776. The unanimous declaration 
of the thirteen united States of America. 

When in the Course of human events, it becomes necessary 
for one people to dissolve the political bands which have con- 
nected them with another, and to assume among the powers 
of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws 
of Nature and of Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect 
to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare 
the causes which impel them to the separation. 

We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are 
created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with 
certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty 
and the pursuit of Happiness. That to secure these rights, 
Governments are instituted among Men, deriving their just 
powers from the consent of the governed, — That whenever 
any Form of Government becomes destructive of these ends, 
it is the Right of the People to alter or to abolish it, and to 
institute new Government, laying its foundation on such 
principles and organizing its powers in such form, as to them 
shall seem most likely to effect their Safety and Happiness. 
Prudence, indeed, will dictate that Governments long estab- 
lished should not be changed for light and transient causes ; 
and accordingly all experience hath shewn, that mankind 
are more disposed to suffer, while evils are sufferable, than to 
right themselves by abolishing the forms to which they are 
accustomed. But when a long train of abuses and usurpa- 

505 



506 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

tions, pursuing invariably the same Object evinces a design 
to reduce them under absolute Despotism, it is their right, 
it is their duty, to throw off such Government, and to provide 
new Guards for their future security. Such has been the 
patient sufferance of these Colonies ; and such is now the 
necessity which constrains them to alter their former Systems 
of Government. The history of the present King of Great 
Britain is a history of repeated injuries and usurpations, all 
having in direct object the establishment of an absolute 
Tyranny over these States. To prove this, let Facts be sub- 
mitted to a candid world. 

He has refused his Assent to Laws, the most wholesome and 
necessary for the public good. 

He has forbidden his Governors to pass Laws of immediate 
and pressing importance, unless suspended in their opera- 
tion till his Assent should be obtained; and when so sus- 
pended, he has utterly neglected to attend to them. 

He has refused to pass other Laws for the accommodation 
of large districts of people, unless those people would relin- 
quish the right of Representation in the Legislature, a right 
inestimable to them and formidable to tyrants only. 

He has called together legislative bodies at places unusual, 
uncomfortable, and distant from the depository of their public 
Records, for the sole purpose of fatiguing them into compli- 
ance with his measures. 

He has dissolved Representative Houses repeatedly, for 
opposing with manly firmness his invasions on the rights of the 
people. 

He has refused for a long time, after such dissolutions, to 
cause others to be elected; whereby the Legislative powers, 
incapable of Annihilation, have returned to the People at 
large for their exercise ; the State remaining in the mean 
time exposed to all the dangers of invasion from without, 
and convulsions within. 

He has endeavoured to prevent the population of these 
States ; for that purpose obstructing the Laws for Naturali- 
zation 'of Foreigners ; refusing to pass others to encourage 



APPENDIX 507 

their migration hither, and raising the conditions of new 
Appropriations of Lands. 

He has obstructed the Administration of Justice, by refusing 
his Assent to Laws for estabHshing Judiciary powers. 

He has made Judges dependent on his Will alone, for the 
tenure of their offices, and the amount and payment of their 
salaries. 

He has erected a multitude of New Offices, and sent hither 
swarms of Officers to harass our people, and eat out their 
substance. 

He has kept among us, in times of peace. Standing Armies 
without the Consent of our legislatures. 

He has affected to render the Military independent of and 
superior to the Civil power. 

He has combined with others to subject us to a jurisdic- 
tion foreign to our constitution, and unacknowledged by our 
laws ; giving his Assent to their Acts of pretended Legisla- 
tion : 

For quartering large bodies of armed troops among us : 

For protecting them, by a mock Trial, from punishment, 
for any Murders which they should commit on the Inhabit- 
ants of these States : 

For cutting off our Trade with all parts of the world : 

For imposing Taxes on us without our Consent : 

For depriving us in many cases, of the benefits of Trial by 
Jury: 

For transporting us beyond Seas to be tried for pretended 
offences : 

For abolishing the free System of English Laws in a neigh- 
bouring Province, establishing therein an Arbitrary govern- 
ment, and enlarging its Boundaries so as to render it at once 
an example and fit instrument for introducing the same 
absolute rule into these Colonies : 

For taking away our Charters, abolishing our most valuable 
Laws, and altering fundamentally the Forms of our Govern- 
ments : 

For suspending our own Legislatures, and declaring them- 



508 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 

selves invested with power to legislate for us in all cases what- 
soever. 

He has abdicated Government here, by declaring us out 
of his Protection and waging War against us. 

He has plundered our seas, ravaged our Coasts, burnt our 
towns, and destroyed the Uves of our people. 

He is at this time transporting large Armies of foreign 
Mercenaries to compleat the works of death, desolation and 
tyranny, already begun with circumstances of Cruelty & 
perfidy scarcely parallel in the most barbarous ages, and 
totally unworthy the Head of a civilized nation. 

He has constrained our fellow Citizens taken Captive on 
the high Seas to bear Arms against their Country, to become 
the executioners of their friends and Brethren, or to fall 
themselves by their Hands. 

He has excited domestic insurrections among us, and has 
endeavoured to bring on the inhabitants of our frontiers, the 
merciless Indian Savages, whose known rule of warfare, is an 
undistinguished destruction of all ages, sexes and conditions. 

In every stage of these Oppressions We have Petitioned for 
Redress in the most humble terms : Our repeated Petitions 
have been answered only by repeated injury. A Prince 
whose character is thus marked by every act which may define 
a Tyrant, is unfit to be the ruler of a free people. 

Nor have We been wanting in attentions to our Brittish 
brethren. We have warned them from time to time of 
attempts by their legislature to extend an unwarrantable 
jurisdiction over us. We have reminded them of the cir- 
cumstances of our emigration and settlement here. We have 
appealed to their native justice and magnanimity, and we 
have conjured them by the ties of our common kindred to 
disavow these usurpations, which would inevitably interrupt 
our connections and correspondence. They too have been 
deaf to the voice of justice and of consanguinity. We must, 
therefore, acquiesce in the necessity, which denounces our 
Separation, and hold them, as we hold the rest of mankind, 
Enemies in War, in Peace Friends. 



I 



APPENDIX 



509 



We, therefore, the Representatives of the United States 
of America, in General Congress, Assembled, appeaUng 
to the Supreme Judge of the world for the rectitude of our 
intentions, do, in the Name, and by Authority of the good 
People of these Colonies solemnly publish and declare. 
That these United Colonies are, and of Right ought to be 
free and Independent States; that they are Absolved from 
all Allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political con- 
nection between them and the State of Great Britain, is and 
ought to be totally dissolved; and that as Free and In- 
dependent States, they have full Power to levy War, 
conclude Peace, contract Alliances, establish Commerce, and 
to do all other Acts and Things which Independent States 
may of right do. And for the support of this Declaration, 
with a firm reliance on the protection of divine Providence, 
we mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, 
and our sacred Honor. 

JOHN HANCOCK. 



^ [New Hampshire.] 

JOSIAH BaRTLETT, 

William Whipple, 
Matthew Thornton. 

[Massachusetts Bay.] 
Samuel Adams, 
John Adams, 
Robert Treat Paine, 
Elbridge Gerry. 



[Connecticut.] 
Roger Sherman, 
Samuel Huntington, 
William Williams, 
Oliver Wolcott. 

[New York.] 
William Floyd, 
Philip Livingston, 
Francis Lewis, 
Lewis Morris. 



[Rhode Island.] 
Stephen Hopkins, 
William Ellert. 



[New Jersey.] 
Richard Stockton, 
John Witherspoon, 
Francis Hopkinson, 
John Hart, 
Abraham Clark. 



' This arrangement of the names is made for convenience. 
States are not mentioned in the original. 



The 



510 



THE PLAIN STORY OP^ AMERICAN HISTORY 



[Pennsylvmiia.] 
Robert Morris, 
Benjamin Rush, 
Benjamin Franklin, 
John Morton, 
George Clymer, 
James Smith, 
George Taylor, 
James Wilson, 
George Ross. 



[Delaware.] 
C^sar Rodney, 
George Read, 
Thomas M'Kean. 



[Maryland.] 
Samuel Chase, 
William Paca, 
Thomas Stone, 
Charles Carroll of 
CarroUton. 



[ Virginia.] 
George Wythe, 
Richard Henry Lee, 
Thomas Jefferson, 
Benjamin Harrison, 
Thomas Nelson, Jr., 
Francis Lightfoot Lee, 
Carter Braxton. 

[North Carolina.] 
William Hooper, 
Joseph Hewes, 
John Penn. 

[South Carolina.] 
Edward Rutledge, 
Thomas Heyward, Jr., 
Thomas Lynch, Jr., 
Arthur Middleton. 

[Georgia.] 
Button Gwinnett, 
Lyman Hall, 
Geo. Walton. 



THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED 
STATES 



Preamble. 
Objects of 
the Consti- 
tution. 



We the people of the United States, in Order to form 
a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic 
TranquiUty, provide for the common defence, promote the 
general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to 
ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this 
Constitution for the United States of America. 



APPENDIX 



511 



Article I. 

Section 1. All legislative Powers herein granted shall be Congress. 
vested in a Congress of the United States, which shall consist ^^^^^ 
of a Senate and House of Representatives. 



Section 2. [1] The House of Representatives shall be com- 
posed of Members chosen every second Year by the People 
of the several States, and the Electors in each State shall 
have the Qualifications requisite for Electors of the most 
numerous Branch of the State Legislature. 

[2] No Person shall be a Representative who shall not have 
attained to the age of twenty-five Years, and been seven 
Years a Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when 
elected, be an Inhabitant of that State in which he shall be 
chosen. 

[3] [Representatives and direct Taxes shall be apportioned 
among the several States which may be included within this 
Union, according to their respective Numbers, which shall 
be determined by adding to the whole Number of free Persons, 
including those bound to Service for a Term of Years, and 
excluding Indians not taxed, three fifths of all other Persons.] 
The actual Enumeration shall be made within three Years 
after the first Meeting of the Congress of the United States, 
and within every subsequent Term of ten Years, in such Man- 
ner as they shall by Law direct. The Number of Represent- 
atives shall not exceed one for every thirty Thousand, but 
each State shall have at least one Representative ; and until 
such enumeration shall be made, the State of New Hampshire 
shall be entitled to chuse three, Massachusetts eight, Rhode- 
Island and Providence Plantations one, Connecticut five, 
New York six. New Jersey four, Pennsylvania eight, Dela- 
ware one, Maryland six, Virginia ten, North Carolina five. 
South Carolina five, and Georgia three. 

[4] When vacancies happen in the Representation from any 
State, the Executive Authority thereof shall issue Writs of 
Election to fill such Vacancies. 



House' of 
Represent- 
atives. . 
Term and 
election. 



Qualifica- 
tions — 
age, citi- 
zenship, 
residence. 



Method of 
apportion- 
ing repre- 
sentatives. 
(Part in 
brackets 
super- 
seded by 
Sec. 2 of 
Amend- 
ment 
XIV.) 
Census. 



Tempo- 
rary 
appor- 
tionment. 



Vacancies. 



512 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



Officers. [5] The House of Representatives shall chuse their Speaker 

and other Officers ; and shall have the sole Power of Impeach- 
ment. 



Senate. 
Election 
and term. 



Division of 
Senators 
into three 
classes. 



Vacancies. 



Qualifica- 
tions — 
age, citi- 
zenship, 
residence. 

Vice-presi- 
dent. 



Officers. 



Trial of 
impeach- 
ments. 



Section 3. [1] The Senate of the United States shall be com- 
posed of two Senators from each State, chosen by the Legisla- 
ture thereof, for six Years ; and each Senator shall have one 
Vote. 

[2] Immediately after they shall be assembled in Conse- 
quence of the first Election, they shall be divided as equally 
as may be into three Classes. The Seats of the Senators 
of the first Class shall be vacated at the Expiration of the 
second Year, of the second Class at the Expiration of the 
fourth Year, and of the third Class at the Expiration of the 
sixth Year, so that one-third may be chosen every second 
Year ; and if Vacancies happen by Resignation, or otherwise, 
during the Recess of the Legislature of any State, the Execu- 
tive thereof may make temporary Appointments until the 
next Meeting of the Legislature, which shall then fill such 
Vacancies. 

[3] No Person shall be a Senator who shall not have at- 
tained to the Age of thirty Years, and been nine Years a 
Citizen of the United States, and who shall not, when elected, 
be an Inhabitant of that State for which he shall be chosen. 

[4] The Vice President of the United States shall be Presi- 
dent of the Senate, but shall have no Vote, unless they be 
equally divided. 

[5] The Senate shall chuse their other Officers, and also 
a President pro tempore, in the Absence of the Vice President, 
or when he shall exercise the Office of President of the United 
States. 

[6] The Senate shall have the sole Power to try all Impeach- 
ments. When sitting for that Purpose, they shall be on Oath 
or Affirmation. When the President of the United States is 
tried, the Chief Justice shall preside : And no Person shall 
be convicted without the Concurrence of two thirds of the 
Members present. 



APPENDIX 



513 



[7] Judgment in Cases of Impeachment shall not extend 
further than to removal from Office, and disqualification to 
hold and enjoy any Office of honor, Trust or Profit under the 
United States : but the Party convicted shall nevertheless 
be liable and subject to Indictment, Trial, Judgment and 
Punishment, according to Law. 



Judgment 
in cases of 
impeach- 
ment. 



Section 4. [1] The Times, Places and Manner of holding 
Elections for Senators and Representatives, shall be prescribed 
in each State by the Legislature thereof ; but the Congress 
may at any time by Law make or alter such Regulations, ex- 
cept as to the Places of chusing Senators. 

[2] The Congress shall assemble at least once in every Year, 
and such Meeting shall be on the first Monday in December^ 
unless they shall by Law appoint a different Day. 



Both 
Houses. 
Times, 
places, and 
method of 
electing 
members. 
Time of 
meeting. 



Section 5. [1] Each House shall be the Judge of the Elections, 
Returns and Qualifications of its own Members, and a 
Majority of each shall constitute a Quorum to do Business ; 
but a smaller Number may adjourn from day to day, and may 
be authorized to compel the attendance of absent Members, 
in such Manner, and under such Penalities as each House 
may provide. 

[2] Each House may determine the Rules of its Proceedings, 
punish its Members for disorderly Behaviour, and, with the 
Concurrence of two thirds, expel a Member. 

[3] Each House shall keep a Journal of its Proceedings, and 
from time to time publish the same, excepting such Parts 
as may in their Judgment require Secrecy; and the Yeas 
and Nays of the Members of either House on any question 
shall, at the Desire of one fifth of those Present, be entered 
on the Journal. 

[4] Neither House, during the Session of Congress, shall, 
without the Consent of the other, adjourn for more than 
three days, nor to any other Place than that in which the two 
Houses shall be sitting. 



Member- 
ship regu- 
lations. 
Quorum. 



Rules of 

each 

house. 

Journals. 



Special 
adjourn- 
ments. 



2l 



514 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



Members. 

Compen- 
sation and 
privileges 
of mem- 
bers. 



Disabili- 
ties of 
members. 



Section 6. [1] The Senators and Representatives shall 
receive a Compensation for their Services, to be ascertained 
by law, and paid out of the Treasury of the United States. 
They shall in all Cases, except Treason, Felony, and Breach 
of the Peace, be privileged from Arrest during their Attend- 
ance at the Session of their respective Houses, and in going 
to and returning from the same ; and for any Speech or De- 
bate in either House, they shall not be questioned in any 
other Place. 

[2] No Senator or Representative shall, during the Time 
for which he was elected, be appointed to any civil Office 
under the Authority of the United States, which shall have 
been created, or the Emoluments whereof shall have been 
encreased during such time ; and no Person holding any Office 
under the United States, shall be a Member of either House 
during his Continuance in Office. 



Bills and 
resolu- 
tions. 
Revenue 
bills. 
Veto of 
President 
on bills. 



Section 7. [1] All Bills for raising Revenue shall originate in 
the House of Representatives ; but the Senate may propose 
or concur with Amendments as on other Bills. 

[2] Every Bill which shall have passed the House of Jlep- 
resentatives and the Senate, shall, before it become a Law, 
be presented to the President of the United States; If he 
approve he shall sign it, but if not he shall return it, with 
his Objections to that House in which it shall have originated, 
who shall enter the Objections at large on their Journal, 
and proceed to reconsider it. If after such Reconsideration 
two thirds of that House shall agree to pass the Bill, it shall 
be sent, together with the Objections, to the other House, 
by which it shall likewise be reconsidered, and if approved 
by two thirds of that House, it shall become a Law. But in 
all such Cases the Votes of both Houses shall be determined by 
Yeas and Nays, and the Names of the Persons voting for and 
against the Bill shall be entered on the Journal of each House 
respectively. If any Bill shall not be returned by the Presi- 
dent within ten Days (Sundays excepted) after it shall have 
been presented to him, the Same shall be a Law, in 



APPENDIX 



515 



like Manner as if he had signed it, unless the Congress by 
their Adjournment prevent its Return, in which Case it 
shall not be a Law. 

[3] Every Order, Resolution, or Vote to which the Concur- Veto on 
rence of the Senate and House of Representatives may be ^?®° "" 
necessary (except on a question of Adjournment) shall be 
presented to the President of the United States and before 
the Same shall take Effect, shall be approved by him, or being 
disapproved by him, shall be repassed by two thirds of the 
Senate and House of Representatives, according to the Rules 
and Limitations prescribed in the Case of a Bill. 



Section 8. The Congress shall have Power [1] To lay and 
collect Taxes, Duties, Imposts and Excises, to pay the 
Debts and provide for the common Defence and general 
Welfare of the United States; but all duties, Imposts and 
Excises shall be uniform throughout the United States ; 

[2] To borrow Money on the credit of the United States ; 

[3] To regulate Commerce with foreign Nations, and among 
the several States, and with the Indian Tribes ; 

[4] To establish an uniform Rule of Naturalization, and 
uniform Laws on the subject of Bankruptcies throughout 
the United States ; 

[5] To coin Money, regulate the Value thereof, and of 
foreign Coin, and fix the Standard of Weights and Measures ; 

[6] To provide for the Punishment of counterfeiting the 
Securities and current Coin of the United States ; 

[7] To establish Post Offices and post Roads ; 

[8] To promote the Progress of Science and useful Arts 
by securing for limited Times to Authors and Inventors the 
exclusive Right to tlieir respective Writings and Discoveries ; 

[9] To constitute Tribunals inferior to the supreme Court ; 

[10] To define and punish Piracies and Felonies committed 
on the high Seas, and Offences against the Law of Nations ; 

[11] To declare War, grant Letters of Marque and Reprisal, 
and make Rules concerning Captures on Land and Water ; 

[12] To raise and support Armies, but no Appropriation of 



Powers of 
Congress. 

Taxation. 



Borrow- 
ing. 

Regulat- 
ing 

commerce. 
Natural- 
ization 
and bank- 
ruptcy. 
Coins, 
weights, 
and 

measures. 
Counter- 
feiting. 
Post 
offices. 
Patents 
and copy- 
rights. 
Inferior 
courts. 
Piracies. 

War. 



Army. 



516 THE PLAIN STORY OF AJVIERICAN HISTORY 



Navy. 
Land and 
naval 
forces. 
Militia, in 



Militia, 
organiza- 
tion. 



Seat of 
govern- 
ment, and 
stations. 



Supple- 
mentary 
legisla- 
tion. 



Money to that Use shall be for a longer Term than two 
Years ; 

[13] To provide and maintain a Navy ; 

[14] To make Rules for the Government and Regulation of 
the land and naval Forces ; 

[15] To provide for calling forth the Militia to execute the 
Laws of the Union, suppress Insurrections and repel Inva- 
sions ; 

[16] To provide for organizing, arming, and disciplining, 
the Militia, and for governing such Part of them as may be 
employed in the Service of the United States, reserving to 
the States respectively, the Appointment of the Officers, and 
the Authority of training the Militia according to the discip- 
line prescribed by Congress. 

[17] To exercise exclusive Legislation in all Cases whatso- 
ever, over such District (not exceeding ten Miles square) 
as may, by Cession of particular States, and the Acceptance 
of Congress become the Seat of the Government of the 
United States, and to exercise like Authority over all Places 
purchased by the Consent of the Legislature of the State in 
which the Same shall be, for the Erection of Forts, Magazines, 
Arsenals, dock- Yards, and other needful Buildings ; — And 

[18] To make all Laws which shall be necessary and proper 
for carrying into Execution the foregoing Powers, and all 
other Powers vested by this Constitution in the Government 
of the United States, or in any Department or Office thereof. 



Limita- 
tions on 
powers of 
Congress. 

Slave 
trade. 
Habeas 
corpus. 
Bills of 
attainder 
and ex 
post facto 
laws. 



Section 9. [1] The Migration or Importation of such Persons 
as any of the States now existing shall think proper to admit, 
shall not be prohibited by the Congress prior to the Year one 
thousand eight hundred and eight, but a Tax or duty may be 
imposed on such Importation, not exceeding ten dollars for 
each Person. 

[2] The Privilege of the Writ of Habeas Corpus shall not be 
suspended, unless when in Cases of Rebellion or Invasion 
the public Safety may require it. 

[3] No Bill of Attainder or ex post facto Law shall be passed. 



APPENDIX 



517 



[4] No Capitation, or other direct, tax shall be laid, unless 
in Proportion to the Census or Enumeration hereinbefore 
directed to be taken. 

[5] No Tax or Duty shall be laid on Articles exported from 
any State. 

[6] No Preference shall be given by any Regulation of Com- 
merce or Revenue to the Ports of one State over those of 
another : nor shall Vessels bound to, or from, one State, be 
obliged to enter, clear, or pay Duties in another. 

[7] No money shall be drawn from the Treasury, but in 
Consequence of Appropriations made by Law ; and a regular 
Statement and Account of the Receipts and Expenditures of 
all public Money shall be published from time to time. 

[8] No title of Nobility shall be granted by the United 
States : And no Person holding any Office of Profit or Trust 
under them, shall, without the Consent of the Congress, 
accept of any present. Emolument, Office, or Title, of any 
kind whatever, from any King, Prince, or foreign State. 



Direct tax. 



Tax on 
exports. 

Uniform 
commer- 
cial regu- 
lations. 

Finance. 



Titles of 
nobility 
and 
presents. 



Section 10. [1] No State shall enter into any Treaty, Alli- 
ance, or Confederation; grant Letters of Marque and Re- 
prisal ; coin Money ; emit Bills of Credit, make any Thing 
but gold and silver Coin a Tender in Payment of Debts ; pass 
any Bill of Attainder, ex post facto Law, or Law impairing 
the obUgation of Contracts, or grant any Title of Nobility. 

[2] No State shall, without the Consent of the Congress, 
lay any Imposts or Duties on Imports or Exports, except what 
may be absolutely necessary for executing it's inspection 
Laws : and the net Produce of all Duties and Imposts, laid by 
any State on Imports or Exports, shall be for the Use of the 
Treasury of the United States; and all such Laws shall be 
subject to the Revision and Controul of the Congress. 

[3] No State shall, without the Consent of Congress, lay any 
Duty of tonnage, keep Troops, or Ships of War in time of 
Peace, enter into any Agreement or Compact with another 
State, or with a foreign Power, or engage in War, unless 
actually invaded, or in such unminent Danger as will not 
admit of delay. 



Limita- 
tions on 
powers of 
States. 
Specific 
prohibi- 
tions. 

Limita- 
tions on 
imposts. 



Prohibi- 
tions re- 
movable 
with con- 
sent of 
Congress. 



518 THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



Presi- 
dent. 
Term. 
Presiden- 
tial elec- 
tors and 
method of 
choosing 
President. 



(Part in 
brackets 
super- 
seded by 
XII 
amend- 
ment.) 



Article II. 

Section 1. [1] The executive Power shall be vested in a 
President of the United States of America. He shall hold his 
OflEice during the Term of four Years, and, together with the 
Vice President, chosen for the same term, be elected, as 
follows : 

[2] Each State shall appoint, in such Manner as the Legisla- 
ture thereof may direct, a Number of Electors, equal to the 
whole Number of Senators and Representatives to which the 
State may be entitled in the Congress : but no Senator or 
Representative, or Person holding an Office of Trust or Profit 
under the United States, shall be appointed an Elector. 
[The electors shall meet in their respective States, and vote 
by ballot for two Persons, of whom one at least shall not be 
an inhabitant of the same State with themselves. And they 
shall make a List of all the Persons voted for, and of the 
Number of Votes for each; which List they shall sign and 
certify, and transmit sealed to the Seat of the Government of 
the United States, directed to the President of the Senate. 
The President of the Senate shall, in the Presence of the 
Senate and House of Representatives, open all the Certifi- 
cates, and the Votes shall then be counted. The Person 
having the greatest Number of Votes shall be the President, 
if such Number be a Majority of the whole Number of 
Electors appointed ; and if there be more than one who have 
such Majority, and have an equal Number of Votes, then the 
House of Representatives shall immediately chuse by Ballot 
one of them for President ; and if no Person have a Majority, 
then from the five highest on the List the said House shall 
in like Manner chuse the President. But in chusing the 
President, the Votes shall be taken by States, the Representa- 
tion from each State having one Vote; A quorum for this 
Purpose shall consist of a Member or Members from two- 
thirds of the States, and a Majority of all the States shall 
be necessary to a Choice. In every Case, after the Choice of 
the President, the Person having the greatest Number of 



APPENDIX 



Votes of the Electors shall be the Vice President. But if 
there should remain two or more who have equal Votes, 
the Senate shall chuse from them by Ballot the Vice Presi- 
dent.] 

[3] The Congress may determine the Time of chusing the 
Electors, and the Day on which they shall give their Votes ; 
which Day shall be the same throughout the United States. 

[4] No Person except a natural born Citizen, or a citizen 
of the United States, at the time of the Adoption of this 
Constitution, shall be eligible to the Office of President; 
neither shall any Person be eligible to that Office who shall 
not have attained to the Age of thirty five Years, and been 
fourteen Years a Resident within the United States. 

[5] In Case of the Removal of the President from Office, or 
of his Death, Resignation, or Inability to discharge the 
Powers and Duties of the said Office, the same shall devolve 
on the Vice President, and the Congress may by Law provide 
for the Case of Removal, Death, Resignation, or Inability, 
both of the President and Vice President, declaring what 
Officer shall then act as President, and such Officer shall act 
accordingly, until the Disability be removed, or a President 
shall be elected. 

[6] The President shall, at stated Times, receive for his 
Servi.ces, a Compensation, which shall neither be encreased 
nor diminished during the Period for which he shall have been 
elected, and he shall not receive within that Period any other 
Emolument from the United States, or any of them. 

[7] Before he enter on the Execution of his Office, he shall 
take the following Oath or Affirmation: — "I do solemnly 
swear (or affirm) that I will faithfully execute the Office of 
President of the United States, and will to the best of my 
Ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the 
United States." 



Dates of 
elections. 



Qualifica- 
tions, citi- 
zenship, 
age, and 
residence. 



Presiden- 
tial suc- 
cession. 



Compensa- 
tion. 



Oath of 
office. 



Section 2. [1] The President shall be Commander in Chief Powers of 
of the Army and Navy of the United States, and of the President. 
Militia of the several States, when called into the actual 



520 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



Military, 
super- 
visory, 
and 
judicial. 



In treaties 
and in 
appoint- 
ments. 



Tempo- 
rary 

appoint- 
ments. 



Service of the United States ; he may require the Opinion, 
in writing, of the principal Officer in each of the executive De- 
partments, upon any Subject relating to the Duties of their re- 
spective Offices, and he shall have Power to grant Reprieves 
and Pardons for Offences against the United States, except 
in Cases of Impeachment. 

[2] He shall have Power, by and with the Advice and Con- 
sent of the Senate, to make Treaties, provided two-thirds of 
the Senators present concur ; and he shall nominate, and by 
and with the Advice and Consent of the Senate, shall appoint 
Ambassadors, other public Ministers and Consuls, Judges of 
the supreme Court, and all other Officers of the United States, 
whose Appointments are not herein otherwise provided for, 
and which shall be established by Law: but the Congress 
may by Law vest the Appointment of such inferior Officers, 
as they think proper, in the President alone, in the Courts 
of Law, or in the Heads of Departments. 

[3] The President shall have Power to fill up all Vacancies 
that may happen during the Recess of the Senate, by grant- 
ing Commissions which shall expire at the End of their next 
Session. 



Legisla- 
tive 
powers. 



Section 3. He shall from time to time give to the Congress 
Information of the State of the Union, and recommend to 
their Consideration such Measures as he shall judge necessary 
and expedient ; he may, on extraordinary Occasions, convene 
both Houses, or either of them, and in Case of Disagreement 
between them, with Respect to the Time of Adjournment, 
he may adjourn them to such Time as he shall think proper ; 
he shall receive Ambassadors and other public Ministers ; 
he shall take Care that the Laws be faithfully executed, and 
shall Commission all the Officers of the United States. 



Liability 
to 

impeach- 
ment. 



Section 4. The President, Vice President and all civil 
Officers of the United States, shall be removed from Office 
on Impeachment for, and Conviction of, Treason, Bribery, 
or other high Crimes and Misdemeanors. 



APPENDIX 



521 



Article III. 

Section 1. The judicial Power of the United States, shall 
be vested in one supreme Court, and in such inferior Courts 
as the Congress may from time to time ordain and establish. 
The Judges, both of the supreme and inferior Courts, shall 
hold their Offices during good Behaviour, and shall, at 
stated Times, receive for their Services, a Compensation, 
which shall not be diminished during their Continuance in Office. 

Section 2. [1] The judicial Power shall extend to all Cases, 
in Law and Equity, arising under this Constitution, the Laws 
of the United States, and Treaties made, or which shall be 
made, under their Authority ; — to all cases affecting Ambas- 
sadors, other public Ministers and Consuls ; — to all cases of 
admiralty and maritime Jurisdiction ; — to Controversies 
to which the United States shall be a party ; — to controversies 
between two or more States ; — between a State and Citizens 
of another State ; — between Citizens of different States — 
between Citizens of the same State claiming Lands under 
Grants of different States, and between a State, or the Citizens 
thereof, and foreign States, Citizens or subjects. 

[2] In all Cases affecting Ambassadors, other public 
Ministers and Consuls, and those in which a State shall be 
Party, the supreme Court shall have original Jurisdiction. 
In all the other Cases before mentioned, the supreme Court 
shall have appellate Jurisdiction, both as to Law and Fact, 
with such Exceptions, and under such Regulations as the 
Congress shall make. 

[3] The Trial of all Crimes, except in Cases of Impeachment, 
shall be by Jury ; and such Trial shall be held in the State 
where the said Crimes shall have been committed ; but when 
not committed within any State, the Trial shall be at such 
Place or Places as the Congress may by Law have directed. 

Section 3. [1] Treason against the United States, shall con- 
sist only in levying War against them, or in adhering to their 
Enemies, giving them Aid and Comfort. No Person shall 



Judici- 
ary. 
Courts. 

Judges : 
term and 
compen- 
sation. 



Jurisdic- 
tion. 



Original 
and 

appellate 
jurisdic- 
tion of 
Supreme 
Court. 



Jury trial. 
Place of 
trial. 



Treason : 
definition, 



522 



THE PLAIN STORY OP AMERICAN HISTORY 



punish- 
ment. 



be convicted of Treason unless on the Testimony of two Wit- 
nesses to the same overt Act, or on Confession in open Court. 
[2] The Congress shall have Power to declare the Punish- 
ment of Treason, but no Attainder of Treason shall work 
Corruption of Blood, or Forfeiture except during the Life 
of the Person attainted. 



Nation 

AND 

States. 

Interstate 
comity. 

Interstate 
citizen- 
ship. 

Extradi- 
tion of 
criminals. 



Fugitive 
slaves. 



Admission 
of new 
States. 



Govern- 
ment of 
national 
territory. 



Article IV. 

Section 1. Full Faith and Credit shall be given in each 
State to the public Acts, Records, and judicial Proceedings 
of every other State. And the Congress may by general 
Laws prescribe the Manner in which such Acts, Records and 
Proceedings shall be proved, and the Effect thereof. 

Section 2. [1] The Citizens of each State shall be entitled 
to all Privileges and Immunities of Citizens in the several 
States. 

[2] A Person charged in any State with Treason, Felony or 
other Crime, who shall flee from Justice, and be found in 
another State, shall on Demand of the executive Authority 
of the State from which he fied, be delivered up, to be removed 
to- the State having Jurisdiction of the Crime. 

[3] No Person held to Service or Labour in one State, under 
the Laws thereof, escaping into another, shall, in Consequence 
of any Law or Regulation therein, be discharged from such 
Service or Labour, but shall be delivered up on Claim of the 
Party to whom such Service or Labour may be due. 

Section 3. [1] New States may be admitted by the Congress 
into this Union ; but no new State shall be formed or erected 
within the Jurisdiction of any other State ; , nor any State be 
formed by the Junction of two or more States, or Parts of 
States, without the Consent of the Legislatures of the States 
concerned as well as of the Congress. 

[2] The Congress shall have Powder to dispose of and make 
all needful Rules and Regulations respecting the Territory 
or other Property belonging to the United States ; and nothing 



APPENDIX 



523 



in this Constitution shall be so construed as to Prejudice any 
Claims of the United States, or of any particular State. 

Section 4. The United States shall guarantee to every 
State in this Union a Republican Form of Government, and 
shall protect each of them against Invasion ; and on Applica- 
tion of the Legislature, or of the Executive (when the Legisla- 
ture cannot be convened) against domestic Violence. 

Article V. 

The Congress, whenever two thirds of both Houses shall 
deem it necessary, shall propose Amendments to this Constitu- 
tion, or, on the Application of the Legislatures of two thirds 
of the several States, shall call a Convention for proposing 
Amendments, which, in either Case, shall be valid to all 
Intents and Purposes as Part of this Constitution, when rati- 
fied by the Legislatures of three fourths of the several States, 
or by Conventions in three fourths thereof, as the one or the 
other Mode of Ratification may be proposed by the Congress ; 
Provided that no Amendment which may be made prior to 
the Year One thousand eight hundred and eight shall in any 
Manner affect the first and fourth Clauses in the Ninth 
Section of the first Article; and that no State, without its 
Consent, shall be deprived of its equal Suffrage in the Senate. 

Article VI. 

[1] All Debts contracted and Engagements entered into, 
before the Adoption of this Constitution, shall be as valid 
against the United States under this Constitution, as under 
the Confederation. 

[2] This Constitution, and the Laws of the United States 
which shall be made in Pursuance thereof ; and all Treaties 
made, or which shall be made, under the Authority of the 
United States, shall be the supreme Law of the Land ; and 
the Judges in every State shall be bound thereby, any Thing 
in the Constitution or Laws of any State to the Contrary not- 
withstanding. 



Protection 
of States. 



Amend- 
ment OF 
Constitu- 
tion. 



Miscel- 
laneous. 
Preexist- 
ing nation- 
al debt. 
Suprem- 
acy of 
Constitu- 
tion, 
treaties, 
and na- 
tional law. 



524 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



Oaths of 
national 
and state 
officials. 



[3] The Senators and Representatives before mentioned, 
and the Members of the several State Legislatures, and all 
executive and judicial Officers, both of the United States 
and of the several States, shall be bound by Oath or Affirma- 
tion, to support this Constitution; but no religious Test 
shall ever be required as a Qualification to any Office or public 
Trust under the United States. 



Ratifica- 
tion. 



Article VII. 

The Ratification of the Conventions of nine States, shall 
be sufficient for the Establishment of this Constitution be- 
tween the States so ratifying the Same. 

Done in Convention by the Unanimous Consent of the States 
present the Seventeenth Day of September in the Year of 
our Lord one thousand seven hundred and Eighty seven 
and of the Independence of the United States of America 
the Twelfth In Witness whereof We have hereunto 
subscribed our Names, 

G° Washington - 
Presidt. and Deputy from Virginia 

[and thirty eight members from all the States except Rhode 

Island.] 



APPENDIX 



525 



ARTICLES IN ADDITION TO, AND AMENDMENT 
OF, THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES 
OF AMERICA, PROPOSED BY CONGRESS, AND 
RATIFIED BY THE LEGISLATURES OF THE 
SEVERAL STATES PURSUANT TO THE FIFTH 
ARTICLE OF THE ORIGINAL CONSTITUTION. 

[Article I ^ 

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of Prohibi- 

religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof ; or abridg- |:!;°"^ °° 

ing the freedom of speech, or of the press ; or the right of the respecting 

people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Govern- religion, 

ment for a redress of grievances. ^^^f^ ' 

the press. 
[Article II ^] 

A well regulated Militia, being necessary to the security Right to 
of a free State, the right of the people to keep and bear Arms, ^^^^ arms, 
shall not be infringed. 

[Article III ^] 

No Soldier shall, in time of peace be quartered in any house, Quarter- 
without the consent of the Owner, nor in time of war, but in ^^f°^ 
a manner to be prescribed by law. 



[Article IV ^] 

The right of the people to be secure in their persons, 
houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches 
and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall 
issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirma- 
tion, and particularly describing the place to be searched, 
and the persons or things to be seized. 

1 First ten amendments proposed by Congress, Sept. 25, 1789. 
Proclaimed to be in force Dec. 15, 1791. 



Right of 
search. 



626 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



Protection 
of accused 
in criminal 
cases. 



[Article V '] 

No person shall be held to answer for a capital, or other- 
wise infamous crime, unless on a presentment or indictment 
of a Grand Jury, except in cases arising in the land or naval 
forces, or in the Militia, when in actual service in time of 
War or public danger ; nor shall any person be subject for 
the same offence to be twice put in jeopardy of life or limb ; 
nor shall be compelled in any Criminal Case to be a witness 
against himself, nor be deprived of life, liberty, or property, 
without due process of law; nor shall private property be 
taken for public use, without just compensation. 



Rights of 
accused 
regarding 
trial. 



[Article VI ^] 

In all cruninal prosecutions, the accused shall enjoy the 
right to a speedy and public trial, by an impartial jury of 
the State and district wherein the crime shall have been com- 
mitted, which district shall have been previously ascertained 
by law, and to be informed of the nature and cause of the 
accusation ; to be confronted with the witnesses against him ; 
to have compulsory process for obtaining Witnesses in his 
favor, and to have the Assistance of Counsel for his defence. 



Jury trial 
in law- 
suits. 



[Article VII ^] 

In suits at common law, where the value in controversy 
shall exceed twenty dollars, the right of trial by jury shall be 
preserved, and no fact tried by a jury shall be otherwise re- 
examined in any Court of the United States, than according 
to the rules of the common law. 



Bail and 
punish- 
ment. 



[Article VIII '] 

Excessive bail shall not be required, nor excessive fines im- 
posed, nor cruel and unusual punishments inflicted. 

1 First ten amendments proposed by Congress, Sept. 25, 1789. 
Proclaimed to be in force Dec. 15, 1791. 



APPENDIX 



527 



[Article IX ^ 

The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, Unenu- 
shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained derated 
by the people. 

[Article X ^] 

The powers not delegated to the United States by the Con- Undele- 

stitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to sated 

. powers, 

the States respectively, or to the people. 



Article XI ' 

The Judicial power of the United States shall not be con- Exemp- 
strued to extend to any suit in law or equity, commenced or *^°" °^ 

1 • ,. 1 XT • 1 . 1 ^- • c States 

prosecuted against one of the United States by Citizens oi fro^ suit. 

another State, or by Citizens or Subjects of any Foreign 

State. 

Article XII 



The Electors shall meet in their respective states, and vote 
by ballot for President and Vice-President, one of whom, at 
least, shall not be an inhabitant of the same state with 
themselves ; they shall name in their ballots the person voted 
for as President, and in distinct ballots the person voted for 
as Vice-President, and they shall make distinct lists of all 
persons voted for as President, and of all persons voted for as 
Vice-President, and of the number of votes for each, which 
lists they shall sign and certify, and transmit sealed to the 
seat of the government of the United States, directed to the 
President of the Senate ; — ■ The President of the Senate 
shall, in presence of the Senate and House of Representatives, 
open all the certificates and the votes shall then be counted ; 
— The person having the greatest number of votes for Presi- 
dent, shall be the President, if such number be a majority of 
the whole number of Electors appointed; and if no person 

1 First ten amendments proposed by Congress, Sept. 25, 1789. 
Proclaimed to be in force Dec. 15, 1791. 

^ Proposed September 5, 1794. Declared in force January 8, 1798. 



New 

method of 
electing 
President. 

(To super- 
sede part 
of Art. II, 
Sec. 1, 
cl. 2.) 

(Proposed 
Dec. 12, 
1803. 
Declared 
in force 
Sept. 25, 
1804.) 



528 



THE PLAESr STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



have such majority, then from the persons having the highest 
numbers not exceeding three on the hst of those voted for as 
President, the House of Representatives shall choose imme- 
diately, by ballot, the President. But in choosing the Presi- 
dent, the votes shall be taken by states, the representation 
from each state having one vote ; a quorum for this purpose 
shall consist of a meml^er or members from two-thirds of 
the states, and a majority of all the states shall be necessary 
to a choice. And if the House of Representatives shall not 
choose a President whenever the right of choice shall devolve 
upon them, before the fourth day of March next following, 
then the Vice-President shall act as President, as in the 
case of the death or other constitutional disability of the 
President. The person having the greatest number of votes 
as Vice-President, shall be the Vice-President, if such number 
be a majority of the whole number of Electors appointed, 
and if no person have a majority, then from the two highest 
numbers on the list, the Senate shall choose the Vice-Presi- 
dent ; a quorum for the purpose shall consist of two-thirds 
of the whole number of Senators, and a majority of the whole 
number shall be necessary to a choice. But no person 
constitutionally ineligible to the office of President shall be 
eligible to that of Vice-President of the United States. 



Abolition 
of slavery. 
(Proposed 
Feb. 1, 
1865. 
Declared 
in force 
Dec. 18, 
1865.) 



Article XIII 

Section 1. Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, 
except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have 
been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or 
any place subject to their jurisdiction. 

Section 2. Congress shall have power to enforce this article 
by appropriate legislation. 



Article XIV 

Citizens of Section 1. All persons born or naturalized in the United 

g^j^^gg States, and subject to the jurisdiction thereof, are citizens 

protection of the United States and of the State wherein they reside. No 



i 



APPENDIX 



529 



State shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the 
privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States ; nor 
shall any State deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, 
without due process of law ; nor deny to any person within its 
jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws. 

Section 2. Representatives shall be apportioned among the 
several States according to their respective numbers, count- 
ing the whole number of persons in each State, excluding 
Indians not taxed. But when the right to vote at any elec- 
tion for the choice of electors for President and Vice Presi- 
dent of the United States, Representatives in Congress, the 
Executive and Judicial officers of a State, or the members of 
the Legislature thereof, is denied to any of the male inhabit- 
ants of such State, being twenty-one years of age, and citi- 
zens of the United States, or in any way abridged, except for 
participation in rebellion, or other crime, the basis of represen- 
tation therein shall be reduced in the proportion which the 
number of such male citizens shall bear to the whole number 
of male citizens twenty-one years of age in such State. 



of. (Pro- 
posed June 
16,1866. 
Declared 
in force 
July 28, 
1868.) 

New basis 
of repre- 
sentation 
in Con- 
gress. 
(Supersed- 
ing part of 
Art. I, Sec. 
2, cl. 3.) 



Section 3. No person shall be a Senator or Representative DisabUi- 
in Congress, or elector of President and Vice President, or *'®® °^ °®" 
hold any office, civil or military, under the United States, or gao-ed in 
under any State, who, having previously taken an oath, as rebellion, 
a member of Congress, or as an officer of the United States, 
or as a member of any State legislature, or as an executive or 
judicial officer of any State, to support the Constitution of 
the United States, shall have engaged in insurrection or re- 
bellion against the same, or given aid or comfort to the enemies 
thereof. But Congress may by two-thirds vote of each House, 
remove such disability. 



Section 4. The validity of the public debt of the United Validity of 
States, authorized by law, including debts incurred for pay- ^^'^'" '^*'^*'- 
ment of pensions and bounties for services in suppressing 
insurrection or rebellion, shall not be questioned. But neither 
2m 



530 



THE PLAIN STORY OF AMERICAN HISTORY 



Voting 
rights of 
citizens of 
the U. S. 



Income 
tax. 



Direct 
election 
of senators. 



Method of 
election. 

Tempo- 
rary 
appoint- 
ments. 



the United States nor any State shall assume or pay any debt 
or obligation incurred in aid of insurrection or rebellion 
against the United States, or any claim for the loss or emanci- 
pation of any slave ; but all such debts, obligations and 
claims shall be held illegal and void. 

Section 5. The Congress shall have power to enforce, by 
appropriate legislation, the provisions of this article. 

Article XV ^ 

Section 1. The right of citizens of the United States to 
vote shall not be denied or abridged by the United States or 
by any State on account of race, color or previous condition 
of servitude. 

Section 2. The Congress shall have power to enforce this 
article by appropriate legislation. 

Article XVI ^ 

The Congress shall have power to lay and collect taxes on 
incomes, from whatever source derived, without apportion- 
ment among the several states, and without regard to any 
census or enumeration. 

Article XVII ' 

The Senate of the United States shall be composed of two 
Senators from each State, elected by the people thereof, 
for six years ; and each Senator shall have one vote. The 
electors in each State shall have the qualifications requisite 
for electors of the most numerous branch of the State legisla- 
tures. 

When vacancies happen in the representation of any State 
in the Senate, the executive authority of each State shall issue 
writs of election to fill such vacancies : Provided that the 
legislature of any State may empower the executive thereof 

» Proposed February 27, 1869. Declared in force March 30, 1870. 
2 Proposed July 12, 1909. Declared in force February 25, 1913. 
•■* Proposed June 12, 1912. Declared in force May 13, 1913. 



APPENDIX 531 

to make temporary appointments until the people fill the 
vacancies by election as the legislature may direct. 

This amendment shall not be so construed as to affect the 
election or term of any Senator chosen before it becomes 
valid as part of the Constitution. 



INDEX 



A. B. C. powers, 486. 

Abolitionists, 293-297. 

Adams, John, elected president, 212 ; 
relations with Hamilton, 243 ; atti- 
tude toward France, 217. 

Adams, John Quincy, secretary of state, 

265 ; and the Monroe Doctrine, 

269; and the election of 1824, 270, 

271 ; opposition to, 271 ; defeated 

. in 1828, 271. 

Adams, Samuel, 144, 145, 146, 147, 148. 

Agent, colonial, 134. 

Agricultural and mechanical colleges, 
502. 

Aguinaldo, 469. 

Alabama, land sales in, 256 ; removal of 
Indians in, 283, 284. 

Alabama, the, career of, 378 ; claims for, 
398. 

Alamo, the, captured, 303. 

Alaska, purchase of, 396 ; coal lands in, 
493. 

Albany, founded, 85, 253 ; congress at, 
123. 

Albemarle Sound, settlements on, 90. 

Alder Gulch, 421. 

Algonquins, relations with the French, 
114. 

Alien laws, the, 218. 

Allen, Ethan, 159. 

Amendments, 205, 525-528 ; thirteenth, 
528 ; fourteentli, 387, 528 ; fifteenth, 
389, 530; sixteenth, 530; seven- 
teenth, 530. 

America, the name, 24. 

American Colonization Society, 293. 

American Federation of Labor, 500. 

Amnesty act, 400. 

Annapolis Convention, 185. 

Antietam, battle of, 363. 

Antislavery petitions, 295. 



Apia, threatened conflict at, 447. 

Appalachian Park, 492. 

Appomattox courthouse, Lee surrenders 

at, 371. 
Arkansas River, reached by La Salle, 116. 
Army, in the war of 1812, 236. 
Arnold, Benedict, 170. . 
Arthur, Chester A., president, 434. 
Articles of Confederation, 159. 
Assembly, the colonial, 103, 110, 132- 

134. 
Atlanta, Georgia, importance of, 351 ; 

taken by Sherman, 354. 
Austin, Moses, 301. 
Austin, Stephen, F., 301. 

Bacon, Nathaniel, rebellion of, 104-105 ; 
his influence, 108. 

Bad Axe, the battle of, 285. 

Balboa, 28. 

Balmeceda, 448. 

Baltimore, attempt against, 240. 

Baltmiore, the, 449. 

Baltimore, Lord, 45, 46, 47. 

Bank, a national, 211. 

Bank of the United States, the second, 
263; destroyed by Jackson, 282, 
283. 

Beauregard, General, at Bull Run, 338. 

Belknap frauds, the, 401. 

Bell, Professor Alexander G., 496. 

Bennington, battle of, 167. 

Berkeley, Sir William, and Bacon's 
rebellion, 104-107 ; his ideas, 108. 

Bienville, 117. 

Bill, nature of a, 198. 

Black Hawk War, the, 285. 

Black Hills, gold in, 427. 

Bladensburg, battle of, 239. 

Blaine, James G., candidate for the presi- 
dency, 435. 



533 



534 



INDEX 



Blockade, European, 230 ; southern, 379. 

Blockade runners, 380. 

Board of Trade, 134. 

Bonds, 375. 

Bonhomme Richard, 179. 

Bonus bill, the, 265. 

Boone, Daniel, 192. 

Booth, John Wilkes, 381. 

"Border states," 337. 

Boston, founded, 57 ; port closed, 148 ; 
evacuated by British, 159. 

"Boston massacre," 145. 

"Boston tea party," 147, 148. 

Braddock, Colonel, 123. 

Bradford, William, governor of Plymouth, 
53. 

Bragg, General, campaign of Perryville, 
345 ; at Murf reesboro, 346 ; defends 
Chattanooga, 347 ; Chickamauga, 
347 ; driven from Chattanooga, 
349-351 ; removed from command, 
353. 

Brandywine, battle of, 165. 

Breckenridge, John C, nominated for the 
presidency, 332. 

Brooke, Lord, 61. 

Brooklyn Heights, 161. 

Brown, John, his attack on slavery, 330. 

Bryan, William J., nominated for the 
presidency, 442, 472, 482 ; oppo- 
sition to trusts, 481. 

Buchanan, James, elected president, 328. 

Buell, General, 341, 343, .345; at 
Perryville, 346 ; removed, 346. 

Buffalo, 253. 

Bull Run, battle of, 338 ; second battle 
of, 361-363. 

Bunker Hill, battle of, 152. 

Burgoyne, General, campaign of, 165, 
167, 168. 

Burnside, General, commands at Fred- 
ericksburg, 363. 

Burr, Aaron, his schemes, 226-229 ; trial 
of, 228. 

Cabinet, the president's, 202. 

Cabot, John, his explorations, 24, 87. 

Calaveras skull, the, 4. 

Calhoun, a "war hawk," 235; on the 
bonus bill, 265 ; secretary of war, 
265 ; elected vice-president, 270 ; 



and nullification, 278 ; on compro- 
mise of 1850, 318; death, 318. 
California, acquired from Mexico, 310 ; 
condition in 1846, 310 ; discovery of 
gold in, 311; and slavery, 316; 
admitted to the union, 318, 319; 
growth of agriculture in, 424. 
Calliope, the, 448. 
Cambridge agreement, the, 56. 
Camden, battle of, 171. 
Campos, General, 458. 

Canada, settled, 114; attack on, 236. 

Canal, Panama, 476-480 ; Nicaraguan, 
477. 

Canals, the need for them, 252-254 ; 
recent construction, 498. 

Canning, British minister, 268. 

Cape Cod canal, 498. 

Captives, in the hands of the Indians, 
112. 

Carolina, settled, 90. 

Carpet-baggers, 393. 

Cartier, Jacques, his explorations, 25, 
114. 

Cass, Lewis, 315. 

Catholics, Roman, in Maryland, 45, 47. 

Cavite, 462. 

Cemetery Ridge, 365, 366. 

Central Pacific Railroad, 425. 

Cervera (Thair-vair-a) , 463, 464, 467, 
468. 

Champlain in Canada, 114. 

Champlain, Lake, battle of, 238. 

Chancollorsville, battle of, 364. 

Charleston, founded, 90; attacked by 
British, 160; captured, 171 ; aboli- 
tion literature in, 295. 

Charleston, the, 449. 

Charlestown, Mass., founded, 57. 

Chattanooga, importance of, 345 ; cam- 
paign against, 347-351. 

Cherokees, removal of, 283, 284. 

Chesapeake, the, 238. 

Cheyennes, war with, 427. 

Chicago University, 502. 

Chickasaws, the, 283, 284. 

Chile, our controversy with, 448-451. 

Chinese immigration, 452. 

Choctaws, 283, 284. 

Cibola, 31. 

Cincinnati, 249, 255. 



INDEX 



535 



Civil rights act of 1866, 387. 

Civil service reform, origin of, 402 ; 
Hayes's attitude toward, 432 ; the 
law of 1883, 433 ; its enforcement 
by Cleveland, 437. 

Clark, George Rogers, 178. 

Clay, Henry, a "war hawk," 235; op- 
poses Monroe, 265 ; the election of 
1824, 270; secretary of state, 270; 
compromise tariff of, 281 ; candi- 
date in 1832, 282 ; and the bank, 
282 ; and the Missouri compro- 
mise, 292; candidate in 1844, 306, 
307 ; part in compromise of 1850, 
317, 318 ; death, 320. 

Clermont, the, 251. 

Cleveland, Grover, governor of New 
York, 436; president, 436; de- 
feated, 438 ; reelected, 440 ; atti- 
tude toward free coinage, 441 ; dis- 
liked by his own party, 442 ; op- 
posed to Hawaiian annexation, 451 ; 
on the Venezuelan boundary, 453- 
455 ; Cuban policy, 460. 

Clinton, De Witt, 253. 

Cod, value as a fish, 77. 

Colleges, colonial, 81 ; recent develop- 
ment, 501. 

Colombia, United States of, and the 
Panama Canal, 477-479. 

Colon, the, 467. 

Colonial policy, England's, 100-103. 

Colonies, kinds of, 97 ; attitude toward 
England, 100. 

Colorado, early history, 420. 

Columbia River, discovered, 225. 

Columbus, Christopher, and Leif Eric- 
sson, 14 ; his plan, 17 ; his voyage 
of discovery, 17 ; other voyages, 
19-21. 

Compromise, Missouri, see Missouri 
Compromise ; of 1850, 317-319. 

Concord, battle at, 151. 

Confederate states of America, organ- 
ized, 333 ; new states admitted, 337 
government, 333 ; flag of, 378 
foreign relations, 378 ; navy of, 378 
ports blockaded, 379. 

Congress, in constitutional convention, 
186, 187; powers, etc., 186-188, 
198, 199. 



Connecticut, colony founded, 60, 61 ; 
charter granted, 61 ; governor's 
salary in, 104. 

Conservation policy, 491. 

Constellation, the, 217. 

Constitution, the federal, adopted, 189 ; 
text of, 510-531. 

Constitution, the, 237. 

Constitutional convention, federal, 186- 
189. 

Continental Congress, first, 149. 

Continental money, 183. 

"Copperheads," 397. 

Corinth, Miss., occupied by Johnston, 
343; by Grant, 344. 

Corn, Indian, advantages of, 69. 

Cornwallis, campaign in New Jersey, 
162-164 ; campaign in the South, 
171-175 ; surrender of, 175. 

Coronado, 31. 

Corte-Real, his explorations, 25. 

Cortez, in Mexico, 30. 

Cotton, the cultivation of, 246. 

"Cotton is King," 377. 

Council, the colonial, 132, 133. 

County, in Virginia, 136 ; in the Middle 
colonies, 137. 

Courts, colonial, 137 ; later, 203. 

Cowpens, battle of, 173. 

Crawford, W. H.,.secretaryof the treasury, 
265; and the election of 1824, 270. 

Creek, Indians, war with, 241 ; in Semi- 
nole war, 267 ; removal of, 283, 284. 

Cuba, discovery of, 19 ; colonization of, 
27 ; insurrection in, 399 ; the war 
to liberate, 457-469 ; two classes 
of people in, 457 ; the ten years' 
war, 457 ; outbreak of a new war, 
459 ; reconcentration, 459 ; de- 
struction of the Maine, 461 ; in- 
tervention, 461 ; independent, 468 ; 
in American hands, 473 ; restora- 
tion of, 473 ; government of, 474 ; 
the Piatt amendment, 474. 

Curtis, George William, 403. 

Custer, General, attacks the Cheyennes, 
427; in the Black Hills, 427; at 
Little Big Horn, 428. 

Dale, Governor, in Virginia, 41, 42. 
Dal ton, Georgia, 351. 



536 



INDEX 



Dare, Eleanor, 37. 

Davis, Jefferson, president of the Con- 
federacy, 333. 

Debts, due to British subjects, 177 ; 
owed by Congress, 182; state, 210; 
national, .375, 413. 

Declaratory act, 144. 

Declaration of Independence, 156 ; text 
of, 505-510. 

Deerfield, attack on, 119. 

Delaware, earliest history, 89. 

De Lesseps, Ferdinand, 476. 

Democratic party, 273 ; recovering from 
the war, 397, 403 ; triumph under 
Cleveland, 436 ; and the tariff 
question, 437 ; and the silver ques- 
tion, 441, 442. 

Dewey, Admiral, at battle of Manila, 
462. 

Diaz, Bartholomew, 15. 

District of Columbia, slave trade in, 316, 
318. 

"Dixie," 313. 

Dorchester founded, 57. 

"Dough-face," 326. 

Douglas, Stephen A., and the Kansa.s- 
Nebraska Act, 324 ; debates with 
Lincoln, 329 ; nominated for presi- 
dency, 332. 

Drummond, William, 106. 

Durham, North Carolina, 371. 

Du«tin, Hannah, 119. 

Dutch, see Holland. 

Eagan, Patrick, 448, 450. 

El Caney, battle of, 465. 

Electoral commission, 40.5. 

Electric cars, 496. 

Emancipation proclamation, the, 376. 

Embargo, Jefferson's, 231. 

Endicott, John, 55. 

England, attitude towards the Southern 
Confederacy, 377 ; and the Vene- 
zuelan boundary, 453-455. 

"Era of good feeling," 266. 

Eric the Red, 14. 

Erie Canal, the, 253. 

Erie, Lake, battle of, 238. 

Eskimos, 2. 

Excise tax, a, 211. 

Executive, 199, 200. 



Far West, settlement of, 419-430. 

Federalist party, the, 208 ; party de- 
feated, 213, 218, 220; opposed to 
war of 1812, 261. 

Ferdinand, and Isabella, 17. 

Ferguson, Major, 171. 

Finlay, Dr. Charles, 473. 

Fish, Hamilton, 399, 400. 

Fishing, 77. 

Flag, 240; union, 374; confederate, 378. 

Florida, discovery of, 28 ; De Soto in, 
29 ; acquired, 266-268, 301 ; re- 
moval of Indians in, 284. 

Forbes, General, 124. 

Forests, disappearing, 491 ; reserves, 491. 

Fork of the Ohio, 121. 

Fort Donelson, 341. 

Fort Duquesne, 122, 123, 124. 

Fort Henry, 341. 

Fort Lee, 162. 

Fort Moultrie, 160. 

Fort Necessity, 122. 

Fort Pitt, 124. 

Fort Sumter, attack on, 335. 

Fort Washington, 162. 

France, explorations, 25 ; colonial efforts, 
113-117; wars with Briti-sh, 118- 
126 ; aid for the American revolu- 
tion, 169; at Yorktown, 175; at 
the treaty-making, 176 ; quarrel 
with, 213-218; Genet, 214; sea 
fights, 217; a new treaty, 217; 
friendly toward the confederacy, 
377. See French. 

Franklin, Benjamin, at Albany congress, 
122 ; colonial agent, 134. 

"Franklin, the State of," 193. 

Fredericksburg, battle of, 363. 

Freedmen's bureau, 386. 

Fremont, John C, 328. 

French, join Indians in war against 
English, 113; attempted settlement 
of, in Florida, 113; trading on the 
St. Lawrence, 114; settle Canada, 
114; relations with Iroquois, 114; 
colonial growth, 116, 117. 

Frontenac, governor of Canada, 118. 

Fugitive slave laws of 1793 and 1850, 
318, 319-.321. 

Fulton, Robert, 251. 

Fur trade, 76. 



INDEX 



537 



"Gag rule," the, 296. 

Gage, General, 145, 150, 151, 159. 

Gallatin, Albert, secretary of the treas- 
ury, 223. 

Gama, Vasco da, 24. 

Garfield, James A., elected president, 
434 ; assassinated, 434, 435. 

Garrison, William Lloyd, his plan, 293 ; 
use of the mails, 295 ; against a 
political party, 327. 

Gates, General, campaign in ^South 
Carolina, 171. 

General court, the, 58. 

Genet (Zhen-nay), in the United States, 
214. 

George III, and the colonies, 144, 145, 
148, 149, 156, 169. 

Georgia, settled, 95; early history, 95- 
97 ; overrun by the British, 170, 
174 ; removal of Indians, 283, 284 ; 
Sherman in, 354. 

Germans, in Pennsylvania, 74, 92. 

Germantown, battle of, 166. 

Germany and the Samoan Islands, 447. 

Gerry, Elbridge, 216. 

Gettysburg, the campaign of, 364-368. 

Ghent, treaty of, 243. 

Gin, the cotton, invented, 246. 

Gold, in Hayti, 20 ; in Mexico and Peni, 
31 ; sought in Virginia, 69 ; in 
California, 311 ; discovered at 
Mount Davidson, 420 ; at Idaho 
Springs, 420; at Alder Gulch, 421 ; 
in the Black Hills, 427 ; the standard 
for coinage, 441, 442, 470. 

Goldsboro, North Carolina, 355. 

Gorges, Fernando, 64. 

Government, self-, in Virginia, 44 ; co- 
lonial, 128-138; actual, 190-206. 

Governor, salary dispute, 103 ; the colo- 
nial, 128, 129, 130, 131; of a state, 
199. 

Grant, General U. S., his campaign in 
West Tennessee, 341 ; at the battle 
of Shiloh, 344 ; campaign against 
Vicksburg, 364 ; in the battle of 
Chattanooga, 349-351 ; in command 
in the East, 353, 357 ; the Wilderness 
campaign, 368 ; at the battle of 
Spotsylvania, 369 ; at Cold Harbor, 
369; the siege of Petersburg, 370; 



forces Lee to surrender, 370 ; 
elected president, 397 ; attitude 
toward reforms, 397 ; reelected, 
398 ; and the Virginius affair, 400 ; 
political scandals and, 400-402 ; 
and civil service reform, 402. 

Great Britain, see England. 

Great Northern Railroad, 426. 

Greeley, Horace, candidate for presi- 
dency, 398. 

Greenbacks, 375; depreciation of, 415, 
416. 

Greene, Nathanael, command in the 
South, 171-174. 

Greenland, colonized, 14. 

Grenville, his laws, 141. 

Guam, 468. 

Guanahani, 19. 

Guerriere, the, 237. 

Guilford Courthouse, battle of, 174. 

"Hair Buyer, the," 178. 

Hakluyt (Hack-lit), 38. 

Hale, Nathan, execution of, 162. 

Half breeds, 433. 

Hamilton, Alexander, his plans for the 
debt, 209-211 ; for a bank, 211 ; for 
manufactures, 211 ; for an excise 
tax, 211. 

Hancock, .John, 146. 

Harlem, battle of, 162. 

Harper's Ferry, seized by John Brown, 330, 

Harper's Weekly, 404. 

Harrison, Benjamin, elected president, 
438 ; defeated, 440. 

Harrison, W. H., 286; elected in 1840, 
287 ; as president, 306. 

Hartford, founded, 60; Dutch at, 85; 
convention, 261. 

Harvard College, founded, 81. 

Haverhill, Mass., attacked, 119. 

Hawaiian Islands, revolution in, 450- 
452 ; annexed, 452. 

Hayes, Rutherford B., nominated for the 
presidency, 405 ; disputed election, 
405 ; becomes president, 432 ; his 
civil service policy, 432 ; his south- 
ern policy, 433. 

Hayne, Robert Y., debate with, Webster, 
279, 280. 

Hayti, discovery of, 19 ; colonized, 27. 



538 



INDEX 



Helena, Montana, 421. 

Henry, Patrick, 142. 

Henry the Navigator, 15. 

Hispaniola, see Hayti. 

Hobson, Lieutenant, 464. 

Holland, and the English separatists, 

50, 51 ; her American colony, 85. 
Homestead act, the, 257, 408. 
Hood, General, defeated at Atlanta, .354 ; 

at Nashville, 3.54. 
Hooker, General, at Lookout Mountain, 

349, 350 ; at Chancellorsville, 364 ; 

removed from command, 365. 
Horseshoe Bend, battle of, 241. 
Houston, Samuel, 304. 
Howe, General, New York campaign, 

161, 162 ; Philadelphia campaign, 

165, 166. 
Hudson, Henr>% 85. 
Huerta, 485. 

Hull, Captain Isaac, 237. 
Hutchinson, Mrs. Anne, expelled from 
Massachusetts, 59 ; founds Rhode 
Island, 60. 

Iberville, 117. 

Iceland, colonized, 13. 

Idaho Springs, 420. 

Immigration, 409. 

Impeachment, 203 ; of President John- 
son, 389. 

Impressment, 229. 

Indented servants, 73. 

Indians, origin of, 1 ; their manner of 
living, 2 ; age of the race, 4 ; lin- 
guistic families, 5 ; confederacies, 6 ; 
clans, 7 ; government, 7 ; marriage, 
8 ; making war, 8, 9 ; houses, 10 ; 
and slavery, 27, 32 ; relations with 
the Spaniards, 32 ; missionaries to, 
32 ; Las Casas and, 33 ; massacre 
whites in Virginia, 43 ; defeated by 
Bacon, 105; why hostile, 110; 
treatment of captives, 112; driven 
back before the whites, 258 ; in 
Georgia and Alabama, 283 ; resist 
railroad building in the Far West, 
426 ; wars with, 427 ; civilizing 
them, 428 ; citizenship of, 430. 

Indian Territory, set off, 284 ; abolished, 
430. 



Indies, the council of, 34. 

Industrial Workers of the World, 500. 

"Insurgents," 483. 

"Interlopers," 77. 

Internal inii>rovements, 264, 276. 

Internal revenue taxes, 374. 

Intervention, Cuban, 461. 

Iroquois, confederacy of, 7 ; oppose the 
French, 114-116; subjects of Eng- 
land, 120. 

Irrigation, 492. 

Isabella, Queen, 17. 

Itala, the, 448. 

Jackson, Andrew, subdues the Creeks, 
241, 259; defends' New Orleans, 
241-243 ; against the Seminoles, 
267 ; and the election of 1824, 270 ; 
elected president, 271 ; presidency 
of, 276-286 ; and the spoils system, 
276 ; against internal improvement, 
276 ; attitude towards nullification, 
279 ; his nullification proclamation, 
281 ; destroys the Bank of the 
United States, 282, 283 ; his Indian 
policy, 283 ; and Texas, 305. 

Jackson, Michigan, 327. 

Jackson, "Stonewall," in the seven days' 
fight, 360; against Pope, 361-363; 
killed at Chancellorsville, 364. 

Jamestown, settlement of, 38 ; early 
history, 38-43 ; destroyed by Bacon, 
106. 

Japan, immigration from, 452 ; land 
ownership in California, 453. 

Jay Cooke and Company, 413. 

Jay treaty, 215. 

Jefferson, Thomas, defies the king, 156; 
writes Declaration of Independence, 
156; secretary of state, 212; as 
republican president, 222 ; elected 
president in 1804, 226 ; his policy 
of peace, 229 ; favors the embargo, 
230 ; refused a third term, 232. 

Jesuits, in Canada, 116. 

Johns Hopkins University, 502. 

Johnson, Andrew, becomes president, 
385 ; his plan of reconstruction, 385 ; 
his vetoes, 386, 387 ; impeached, 
389. 

Johnston, General Albert Sidney, 343. 



INDEX 



539 



Johnston, General Joseph E., defends 
Atlanta, 353 ; at battle of Kennesaw 
Mountain, 353 ; removed from com- 
mand, 354 ; defends Richmond, 
359; surrender of, 371. 

Jones, John Paul, 178. 

Kansas, territory created, 324 ; settled, 

325 ; civil war in, 325. 
Kansas-Nebraska act, 324. 
Kennesaw Mountain, battle of, 353. 
Kentucky, early history, 192 ; riflemen 

at New Orleans, 242 ; and secession, 

337. 
Kentucky and Virginia resolutions, 219. 
Key, Francis Scott, 240. 
Kidnapping, 73. 

King's Mountain, battle of, 171. 
Knights of Labor, 500. 
Ku Klux Klan, 390-393. 

Labor, early system in Virginia, 38, 41 ; 
in Plymouth, 51, 54. 

Labor unions, growth of, 498. 

Laborers, in early Virginia, 69, 73. 

Lafayette, General, at Yorktown, 174, 
175. 

Land, ceded in the West, 190 ; sales of, 
255-257 ; mineral, 493. 

Lansing skulls, the, 4. 

La Salle, explorations of, 116. 

Las Casas, 33. 

Laud, Archbishop, 56. 

Law, nature of a, 198. 

Lawmaking, 129, 198. 

Lawrence, Captain James, 238. 

Lawton, General, 465. 

Leary, Captain, at Apia, 447. 

Lee, General Charles, 169. 

Lee, General Robert E., placed in com- 
mand, 360 ; in the seven days' fight, 
360 ; his campaign against Pope, 
361-363; at Fredericksburg, 363; 
at Chancellorsville, 364 ; his Gettys- 
burg campaign, 364-368 ; in the 
Wilderness campaign, 368 ; at Spot- 
sylvania, 369 ; at Cold Harbor, 369 ; 
retreat from Petersburg, 370 ; sur- 
render of, 371. 

Leif Ericsson, 14. 

Leland Stanford Jr. University, 502. 



Leon, Ponce de, 27. 

Lewis and Clarke, expedition of, 225. 

Lexington, battle of, 151. 

Liberal republicans, 397. 

Liberator, the, established, 293. 

Liberia, established, 293. 

Liliuokalani, 451. 

Lincoln, Abraham, debate with Douglas, 
329, 330 ; nominated for the presi- 
dency, 331 ; elected, 332 ; and the 
southern forts, 335 ; raises an army, 
335 ; his emancipation proclama- 
tion, 376 ; preserver of union, 380 ; 
reelected president, 381 ; assassi- 
nated, 381 ; his reconstruction plan, 
385. 

L' Insurgent, the, 217. 

Little Round Top, 367. 

Livingston, minister to France, 224. 

London Company, the, created, 38 ; de- 
stroyed, 44 ; and the Pilgrims, 51. 

Long Island, settled, 87 ; favors the Eng- 
lish, 89. 

Lookout Mountain, battle on, 349. 

"Loose construction," 272. 

"Lost Colony of Roanoke, The," 37. 

Louisburg, capture of, 120. 

Louisiana, settled, 117; purchased, 224; 
transferred to Spain, 299 ; to France, 
299 ; life in, 299 ; boundaries, 301 ; 
disputed election in, 405. 

Louisville, 249. 

Lumber, 79. 

Lundy, Benjamin, 292. 

Madero, 485. 

Madison, James, president, 222, 223 ; 
and the "war hawks," 235; veto of 
bonus bill, 265. 

Magellan, his discoveries, 21. 

Mails, used by abolitionists, 295. 

Maine, beginning of, 64 ; a state, 292. 

Maine, the, destruction of, 461. 

Manila, the battle of, 462. 

Manufactures, in early Virginia, 76 ; 
in early New England, 79 ; colonial 
restrictions on, 103 ; protection of, 
211; and the War of 1812, 243; 
growth after 1865, 408. 

Marco Polo, 17, 20. 

Marquette, Father, 116. 



540 



INDEX 



Marshall, John, commissioner to France, 
216. 

Maryland, founded, 45 ; early history, 
45-47 ; religious toleration in, 45, 
47 ; government, 46 ; boundary 
dispute, 93 ; and secession, 337 ; 
General Lee in, 363. 

Mason, Captain John, 62. 

Mason and DLxon's line, 93, 313. 

Massachusetts, growth of, 58 ; early 
government of, 58 ; relations with 
New Hampshire and Maine, 64 ; and 
the New England Confederation, 
65 ; agriculture in, 76 ; manu- 
factures in, 79 ; religion in, 79-81 ; 
education in, 81 ; loss of charter, 94 ; 
proposed dominion, 95 ; new charter, 
95 ; governor's salary, 104 ; expedi- 
tion against Quebec, 119; and the 
revolution, 145, 148. 

Massachusetts Bay Colony, receives a 
charter, 55 ; moves to New England, 
56. 

Massasoit, 53, 110. 

Mayflower, the, 52. 

Mayflower Compact, the, 55. 

Maysville road, 277. 

McClellan, General Geo. B., training 
the army, 357 ; the peninsula cam- 
paign, 357-361 ; removed, 361 ; in 
command at Antietam, 363. 

McDonough, Captain, 239. 

McDowell, General, at Bull Run, 338. 

McKinley, William, Jr., his tariff bill, 
439 ; elected president, 443 ; Cuban 
policy of, 460, 461 ; and the Philip- 
pines, 469 ; reelected, 472 ; death of, 
472 ; on the government of Cuba, 
474. 

Meade, General, commands in Gettys- 
burg campaign, 365-368. 

Merrimac, the, 378. 

Mexico, inhabitants of, 2 ; conquest of, 
30 ; independence declared, 301 ; 
early relations with Texas, 302 ; 
struggle against, 303-305 ; our war 
with, 309; treaty with, 310 ; recent 
relations with, 485, 486. 

Middle states, migration from, 247. 

Militia, 129, 136. 

Mineral lands, 493. 



Mining, methods, 422, 423. 

Ministers, influence of, 58, 180 ; on the 
frontier, 258. 

Missionary Ridge, battle of, 350. 

Missions, Spanish, 32. 

Mississippi, land sales in, 256 ; laws for 
negroes, 386. 

Mississippi River, discovered by 
De Soto, 29 ; by Father Marquette, 
116. 

Missouri, admitted to the union, 292 ; 
and secession, 337 ; liberal republi- 
cans in, 397. 

Missouri compromise, 268, 291, 313; 
reversed by Kansas-Nebraska act, 
324 ; by the Dred Scott decision, 
329. 

Mobile, seized, 241. 

Mohawks, and the Pequots, 63. 

Mohegans, 62, 63. 

Molasses act, 101, 141. 

Monhegan, .53. 

Monitor, the, 378. 

Monmouth, battle of, 169. 

Monroe doctrine, 268-270 ; later phases, 
446, 454. 

Monroe, James, 222 ; and the purchase of 
Louisiana, 224 ; elected president, 
262; and Clay, 265; and "era of 
good feeling," 265; and the Monroe 
doctrine, 268. 

Montana, early history of, 421. 

Montcalm, General, 124, 125. 

Montgomery, Ala., first capital of the 
confederacy, 333. 

Montreal, reached by Cartier, 25. 

Moore's Creek, battle of, 159. 

Morgan, General, 173. 

Mormons, early hardships, 424 ; intro- 
duce irrigation, 492 ; and the admis- 
sion of Utah, 423. 

Morse, S. B. F., 496. 

Mound builders, the, 5. 

Mount Davidson, 420. 

Mount Hope, battle at, 112. 

Murfreesboro, battle of, 346. 

Mystic River, fort on, 62. 

Narragansetts, 53 ; in Pequot war, 62, 

63; conquered. 111. 
Nar-va-ez (-ath), de, 29. 



INDEX 



541 



Nashville, battle of, 354. 

Naval stores, 79. 

Navigation, medieval, 15. 

Navigation acts, 101. 

Navy, John Paul Jones and, 178 ; in the 

war of 1812, 237 ; enlarged under 

Harrison, 438. 
Nebraska, territory created, 324. 
Negro, what to do with him in 1865, 384 ; 

allowed to vote, 388 ; misuse of the 

privilege, 390 ; overthrow of negro 

voters, 393, 394. 
Nevada, settlement of, 419. 
New Amsterdam, 86. 
New England, beginning of, 49 ; life in, 

76-82 ; migration from, 247. 
New England Confederation, the, 65. 
Newfoundland, acquired by England, 

120. 
New France, 114. 
New Hampshire, beginning of, 64. 
New Haven, founded, 61. 
New Jersey, settled, 89. 
New Mexico, and slavery, 316, 318. 
New Netherland, 86-88. 
New Orleans, attacked by the British, 

241-243 ; trade of, 250-252 ; taken 

by the North, 345. 
New York, fort on Manhattan Island, 85 ; 

colonial government of, 87 ; taken 

by the English, 88 ; occupied by the 

British, 161 ; growth of, 254. 
Nicaragua Canal, 477. 
Non-intercourse act, the, 232. 
Norsemen, as explorers, 13. 
North Carolina, settled, 90 ; life in, 91 ; 

Cornwallis in, 171, 173, 174; and 

the federal constitution, 190. 
Northern Pacific and the panic of 1873, 

413 ; extension, 425. 
Northwest, taken by Clark, 178 ; growth 

of, 409. 
Northwest Ordinance, 191, 192, 313. 
Nova Scotia, acquired by England, 120. 
Nullification, doctrine of, 278 ; and 

Hayne-Webster debate, 279, 280; 

Jackson against it, 278, 281. 

Oglethorpe, General, 95. 
Oklahoma, made a state, 430. 
Oquendo, the, 467. 



Oregon, discovered by Lewis and Clarke, 
225 ; boundary settled, 305 ; a 
territory, 316; disputed electoral 
vote, 405 ; agriculture and lumber- 
ing in, 424. 

Oriskany, battle of, 168. 

Osceola, 284. 

Otis, James, 142. 

Pacific Ocean, discovered, 28, 

Panama, 476, 477, 478, 479. 

Panama Canal, 476, 479. 

Panama congress, 271. 

Panama, Isthmus of, 28. 

Panic, of 1837, 286 ; of 1873, 413. 

Parker, Alton B., 481. 

Patroons, 86. 

Pemberton, General, 347. 

Peninsula campaign, the, 357-361. 

Penn, William, buys Delaware, 89 ; 
founds Pennsylvania, 91 ; his con- 
nection with, 92-94. 

Pennsylvania, • early history, 91-94; 
government of, 92, 94 ; boundary 
dispute, 93 ; tax controversy, 94 ; 
local government in, 137 ; Lee's 
campaign in, 364-368. 

Pensions, for service, 439. 

Pequots, war on the whites, 62 ; de- 
feated, 63. 

Perry, Captain Oliver H., 238. 

Perryville, battle of, 346. 

Peru, conquest of, 31. 

Petersburg, siege of, 370. 

Philadelphia, 92, 254. 

Philip, King, war of, 110-113. 

Philippines, Dewey's victory in, 463 ; ac- 
-quired from Spain, 469 ; war against 
the natives, 469 ; government in, 475. 

"Pickett's charge," 367. 

Pierce, Franklin, president, 322-325; 
favors the South, 326. 

Pilgrims, 52. 

Pinckney, C. C, 216, 226. 

Pinzon, his discoveries, 21. 

Pioneer, the, 257. 

Pitt, WilHam, 123. 

Pittsburgh, 121, 124, 247, 249, 252, 255; 
importance of the site of, 121. 

Pittsburg Landing, battle of, 344. 

Pizarro, 31. 



542 



INDEX 



Plains of Abraham, the, 125. 
Plantations, established in Virginia, 70 ; 

character of, 72. 
Piatt amendment, 474. 
Plymouth, settlement at, 52-55 ; com- 
mon property, 54 ; expansion of, 54; 

absorbed by Massachusetts, 94. 
Plymouth Company, the, 38 ; and the 

Pilgrims, 55. 
Pocahontas, 42. 
Polk, James K., elected president, 306, 

307 ; and the Oregon question, 308 ; 

and the Mexican War, 309 ; and the 

acquisition of California, 310. 
Pope, General, in command, 361 ; his 

campaign of second Bull Run, 361- 

363 ; removed, 363. 
Pope's bull, the, 23. 
Popular sovereignty, 324. 
Port Hudson, Miss., importance of, 345; 

taken by the federals, 347. 
Portland, Maine, 118. 
Porto Rico, occupied by the United 

States army, 468 ; the treaty of 

Paris, 468 ; government of, 476. 
Portuguese, explorations of, 15 ; secures 

Brazil, 23. 
Powderly, Terrence V., 500. 
Powhatan, power of, 7, 42. 
Preachers, pioneer, influence of, 258. 
President, powers, etc., 199-203. 
Princeton, battle of, 163. 
Progressive party, founded, 484. 
Providence, R. I., founded, 59. 
Pulaski, Tennessee, 391, 392. 
Puritans, origin of, 49, 55 ; settlement in 

New England, 55 ; persecuted, 60. 

Quakers, in Pennsylvania, 91, 92. 
Quebec, founded, 114; attack planned, 

119 ; captured by Wolfe, 124. 
Quebec act, 148. 

Railroads, extension after 1865, 412 ; 
to the Pacific coast, 425 ; early his- 
. tory, 493 ; great systems, 494 ; com- 
plaints against, 495 ; commissions, 
495. 

Raleigh, Sir Walter, 36, 37. 

Rapid transit, 497. 

Rebates, 495. 



Reconcentration, 459. 

Reconstruction, 384-394 ; two steps in, 
384 ; the first attempt, 385 ; Stevens's 
policy, 386-388; the acts of 1867, 
388 ; southern states readmitted, 
388 ; how it affected the South, 390- 
394. 

Redemptioners, 74. 

Religion, condition of in the colonies, 
79-81 ; on the frontier, 258. 

Republican party, first, in power, 222. 

Republican party of 1854, founded, 
327. 

Resumption of specie payment, 416. 

Revere, Paul, 151. 

Revolution, causes of, 140-153. 

Rhode Island, founded, 60 ; excluded 
from the confederation, 65 ; and gov- 
ernor's salary, 104 ; rejects the con- 
stitution, 190. 

Richmond, Virginia, electric cars first 
used in, 497. 

Right of search, see Impressment. 

River towns of Connecticut, 60. 

Roads, in early Virginia, 75. 

Roanoke Island, 36. 

Robinson, Rev. John, 50, 52. 

Rochambeau, at Yorktown, 175. 

Rock Island, 285. 

Rockefeller, John D., 480. 

Rolfe, John, raises tobacco, 41. 

Roosevelt, President Theodore, in 
Spanish War, 465 ; becomes presi- 
dent, 472 ; attitude toward trusts, 
481 ; elected president, 481 ; his 
policies, 482 ; in the campaign of 
1912, 483 ; conservation policy, 492. 

Rosecrans, General, 346 ; at Mursfrees- 
boro, 346 ; at Chickamauga, 347 ; 
removed, 349. 

"Rough Riders," 465. 

Sachem, 7. 

Sacs, the, 285. 

St. Clair, 259. 

St. Leger, campaign of, 165, 168. 

St. Louis, 250. 

St. Mary's, Maryland, 46. 

Salmon Falls, 118. 

Samoan Islands, dispute over, 446-448. 

Samoset, 53. 



INDEX 



543 



Sampson, Rear Admiral, 464. 

Sandys, Sir Edwin, 44. 

San Jacinto, battle of, 304. 

San Juan, battle of, 465, 466. 

Santa Anna, General, 303 ; his treaty, 
305. 

Santa Fe system, of railroads, 426. 

Santiago, Cuba, reached by Cervera, 
463 ; blockaded, 464 ; land expedi- 
tion against, 464-466 ; naval battle 
off, 467 ; surrendered, 468. 

Saratoga, battle of, 168. 

Sassacus, 63. 

Savannah, founded, 95 ; taken by British, 
171 ; Sherman's army at, 354. 

Saybrook, Conn., founded, 61 ; at- 
tacked by Pequots, 62. 

Saye and Sele, Lord, 61. 

Scalawags, 393. 

Schenectady, attacked, 118. 

Schley, Rear Admiral, 463, 464. 

Schools, public, growth of, 501. 

Schurz, Carl, a reformer, 432, 433. 

Scotch-Irish, the, in America, 92. 

Scott, Dred, decision, 328, 329. 

Scott, General Winfield, in Mexico, 309. 

Scrooby, 50. 

Secession, 332, 337. 

Sedition law, the, 218. 

Seminoles, at war in 1817, 267 ; resist 
removal, 284. 

Senate, the federal, 186, 199. 

Separatists, origin of, 49. 

Seven Pines, the battle of, 359. 

Sevier, John, 193. 

Seward, William H., purchases Alaska, 
396. 

Seymour, Governor, 397. 

Shannon, the, 237. 

Sheridan, his Indian policy, 427 ; opera- 
tions against the Sioux, 427. 

Sheriff, 136. 

Sherman, General, W. T., at the battle 
of Chattanooga, 349, 351 ; Atlanta 
campaign, 353 ; marching through 
Georgia, 354 ; at Goldsboro, 354 ; 
receives surrender of Johnston, 371. 

Shirley, Governor, of Massachusetts, 
120. 

Silk, early attempt to produce, 70. 

Silver, free coinage of, 441. 



Sioux, war with, 427. 

Sitting Bull, 427. 

Slavery, of Indians, 27 ; of negroes, 27 ; 
introduced into Virginia, 74 ; in the 
constitutional convention, 187 ; the 
slave trade, 189 ; abolished in the 
North, 290 ; prices of slaves, 291 ; 
the foreign slave-trade prohibited, 
291 ; opposed by abolitionists, 293- 
297 ; conditions of, 296 ; its relation 
to the war, 297 ; in Texas, 303 ; in 
the territories, 314, 315, 316, 317- 
319 ; the demands of the South on, 
316,317; Lincoln's view of, 375; 
the emancipation proclamation, 376 ; 
abolished by the thirteenth amend- 
ment, 376, 528. 

Smith, Captain John, 40, 43, 52. 

Smuggling, 102 ; on the Potomac, 185. 

Sons of liberty, 142. 

"Soo," the, 498. 

Soto, de, 29. 

South, the, migration from, 245 ; and the 
tariff, 277 ; on slavery in the terri- 
tories, 316, 317; development after 
the war, 409 ; labor system of, 411 ; 
cropping, 411 ; towns built up, 412 ; 
railroads in, 495. 

South America, discovered by Columbus, 
20. 

South Carolina, settled, 90 ; life in, 91 ; 
taken by the British, 170-173; 
recovered by Greene, 174 ; oppo- 
fdtion to tariff, 277 ; and nullifica- 
tion, 278, 279, 281 ; leads in seces- 
sion, 332 ; disputed electoral vote 
of, 405. 

Southern Pacific Railroad, 426. 

Southwest, early history of, 299-311. 

Spain, aids Columbus, 17, 19; her ex- 
plorers, 21-24 ; colonial policy, 27- 
34 ; transfers Florida, 266-268 ; the 
Virginius affair, 399 ; her Cuban 
policy, 457 ; ten years' war 457 ; 
promises to Cubans, 458 ; the war 
with the Cubans, 459-469 ; treaty 
of peace, 468. 

Speaker, colonial, 133. 

Spoils system, 276 ; Hayes on, 432. 

Spotsylvania, battle of, 369. 

Squanto, 53. 



544 



INDEX 



Squatter, the, 257. 

"Squatter sovereignty," 324. 

Stalwarts, 433. 

Stamp Act, passed, 141 ; resisted, 142 ; 

repealed, 144. 
Stamp Act Congress, 141, 142, 148. 
Standish, Miles, 53. 
"Stand-patters," 483. 
Stark, Colonel John, 167. 
"Stars and Bars," 378. 
" Star -Spangled Banner, the," 240. 
State rights, 273. 
States, created, 156 ; rivalry between 

small and large, 186 ; duties of, 

196 ; government of, 197. 
Steamboats, invention of, 251. 
Stevens, Thaddeus, 387. 
Stone River, or Murfreesboro, battle of, 

346. 
Stowe, Mrs. Harriet Beecher, 330. 
"Strict construction," 272. 
Stuyvesant, Peter, 88. 
Sugar, raised, 20, 27 ; in Louisiana, 

299 
Swansea, attacked by the Indians, 111. 
Sweden, colony of, 89. 

Taft, William H., elected president, 482 ; 
supports tariff law, 483 ; in the cam- 
paign of 1912, 483. 

Tampa, 28, 29. 

Tampico, 485. 

TarifT, first protective, 263 ; later acts, 
273, 277 ; Clay's compromise, 281 ; 
war tariff, 374 ; other acts, 414, 415 ; 
tariff of 1883, 435 ; under Cleveland, 
437 ; the McKinley law, 439 ; the 
Wilson-Gorman law, 441 ; Dingley 
act, 470; Payne-Aldrich act, 483; 
Underwood act, 485. 

Tarleton, Colonel, 173. 

Taxation under the Confederation, 183, 
184. 

Taylor, General Zachary, fighting in 
Mexico, 309 ; elected president, 316. 

Tea, tax on, 144, 147 ; "tea party," 147. 

Telegraph, 496. 

Telephone, invention of, 496. 

Tennessee, early history, 193 ; riflemen 
of, at New Orleans, 242. 

Territorial government, 192. 



Texas, early boundaries, 301 ; Austin's 
colony, 301 ; restrictions by Mexico, 
302 ; war of independence, 303- 
305 ; annexation, 305, 306, 307 ; 
payment for land of, 318. 

Theresa, the, 467. 

Thomas, General, at Chickamauga, 347 ; 
at Chattanooga, 351. 

Tilden, Samuel J., governor of New York, 
404 ; exposes the Tweed ring, 405 ; 
candidate for the presidency, 405. 

Times, the New York, 404. 

Tobacco, discovered by Columbus, 19 ; 
culti\'ated in Virginia, 41, 70; used 
as money ; 72 ; a staple crop, 75. 

Tonti, 117. 

Tories, harsh laws against, 177. 

Town, New England, 58, 136; in Vir- 
ginia, 70 ; in Middle colonies, 137 ; 
in the West, 249 ; trading, 97 ; de- 
velopment of, 491. 

Townshend duties, 144, 146, 148. 

Township system, the, 192. 

Trade, in colonial times, 76, 77 ; Indian, 
105; fur in Canada, 114. 

Travel, means of, 248. 

Travis, William B., 303. 

Treatv of Paris, 1763, 126; with Great 
Britain, 1783, 175 ; of Ghent, 243 ; 
with Mexico, 310; with Spain, in 
1898, 469. 

Trenton, battle of, 163. 

Trial, how conducted, 205. 

Trusts, 480 ; law against, 481 ; Roose- 
velt and, 481. 

Tweed frauds, 404. 

Tyler, John, elected vice president, 287 ; 
as president, 307. 

"Uncle Tom's Cabin," 330. 

Underground railway, the, 294, 316. 

Union, the question of, 158. 

Union Pacific Railroad, 425. 

Universities, 501, 502. 

Utah, and slavery, 318 ; early history of, 

423. 
Utrecht, treaty of, 120. 

Vaca, Cabega de (Vah-kah, Ca-ba-za 

de), 29, 31. 
Valley Forge, 166. 



INDEX 



545 



Van Buren, Martin, 276, elected presi- 
dent, 285 ; defeated in 1840, 287. 

Venezuelan boundary dispute, 451-453. 

Vera Cruz, troops landed at, 486. 

Verrazano, his explorations, 25. 

Vespucci, Amerigo, 24. 

Vicksburg, Miss., importance of, 344 ; 
taken by Grant, 346. 

Vinland, 14. 

Virginia, the name, 36 ; first attempt to 
settle, 37 ; early history of, 38-45 ; 
suffering of the colonists, 39 ; tobac- 
co, 41 ; services of Pocahontas, 42 ; 
massacre of 1621, 43 ; Indian war 
of 1644, 43 ; self-government in, 
44; a royal province, 45; "Mother 
of States," 45; life in, 69-76; reli-. 
gion, 81 ; education, 81 ; the county 
in, 136 ; and the revolution, 145, 
149 ; calls continental congress, 149 ; 
Cornwallis in, 174, 175; against 
emancipation, 290. 

Virginia and Kentucky resolutions, 219. 

Virginia, the, 378. 

Virginia City, 420. 

Virginius, the, 399. 

Vizcaya, the, 467. 

Voting in 1789, 198. 

Wampanoags, friendly to the whites, 53. 

"War hawks," the, 234, 235, 261. 

War of 1812, 232, 234-243 ; causes of, 
234-236 ; its declaration, 236. 

Wars, Indian, against the Virginia Ind- 
ians, 43 ; with Pequots, 62-64 ; King 
Philip's, 110-113; King William's, 
113, 118; Queen Anne's, 113, 119; 
King George's, 113, 120; the Seven 
Years' War, 113 ; in Ohio, 259 ; with 
the Creeks, 271 ; with Seminoles, 
267 ; Black Hawk, 285 ; with Western 
Indians, 426-428. 

Washington, agriculture and lumbering 
in, 424 ; created a state, 425. 

Washington City, burned, 240. 

Washington, George, sent to the Ohio, 
121 ; at Fort Necessity, 122 ; with 
Braddock, 123 ; revolutionary com- 
mander in chief, 153 ; at Boston, 
159 ; campaign around New York, 



161 ; in New Jersey, 162-164 ; cam- 
paign in Pennsylvania, 165, 166 ; 
at Valley Forge, 167 ; at battle of 
Monmouth, 169 ; at Yorktown, 175 ; 
president, 209-216. 

" Watauga Association, the," 193. 

Watertown, founded, 57. 

Watling's Island, 19. 

Webster, Daniel, 272; debate with 
Hayne, 280 ; candidate for the 
presidency, 285 ; on the compromise 
of 1850, 318; death, 321. 

West, the settlement of, 245-259, 419- 
430 ; desires free silver, 441 ; rail- 
roads in, 495. 

"Western Reserve, the," 248. 

Wethersfield, Conn., founded, 60. 

Whaling, 78. 

Wheeler, General Joseph, 472. 

Whig party, 273, 327. 

Whisky insurrection, 212. 

Whisky ring, the, 401. 

White, H. L., 286. 

White Plains, battle of, 162. 

Whitney, Eli, 246. 

Wilderness, battle of the, 368. 

William and Mary College, 82. 

Williams, John, 119, 120. 

Williams, Roger, 111; expulsion of, 59 ; 
founds Providence, 59 ; and the Nar- 
ragansetts, 62 ; dislike of Massachu- 
setts, for, 65. 

Williamsburg, 131. 

Wilmot proviso, the, 314. 

Wilson, Woodrow, elected president, 
484 ; his Mexican policy, 485. 

Wilson-Gorman tariff, the, 440. 

Windsor, Conn., founded, 60. 

Winthrop, John, a founder of Massachu- 
setts, 50. 

Wireless telegraphy, 496. 

Wolfe, General, 124, 125. 

Wyoming, settlement of, 423. 

X Y Z papers, 217. 

Yale College, founded, 82. 
Yellow fever, prevented, 473. 
York, the Duke of, 88. 
Yorktown taken, 175. 



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